Destiny: Skyfall
by Link234521
Summary: "When all hope is lost, and the Darkness smothers the Light, what will you do? Be a ray of Light from a dying Traveler? Or be consumed by the Darkness?" TAKEN KING ADAPTATION. If recently slaying Crota was bad enough, Fireteam Nero Bianco has to face the wrath of his father, Oryx the Taken King and his Taken army? Written alongside The Crimson Commando's "Dragons' Destiny".
1. I-I: The Taken War Begins

**Hey guys! I'm sorry if I haven't been updating much since February, but I had a lot to deal with which I will explain for later on. No, Reloaded isn't getting shut down, it's just in the middle of some issues right now. So just sit back and relax and read the first outing of one of my new favorite video games,** _ **Destiny**_ **!**

 **Right now, I'll keep this one explicitly an oneshot (Edit 11/28/15: no longer a oneshot!). If there are people who want more, then I'll try and whip something up from my lab of craziness! Provided the things I have explaining to do doesn't drag me down to their hell…**

 **The main Guardians in this** _ **Destiny**_ **fanfic are based on actual people personality-wise: me, my two brothers and my sister. I'll give you bonus points if you can correctly guess which Guardian represents me and my siblings.**

 **Okay, enough blabbering. Let's get this show on the road!**

 **Author's notice: I, in no shape or form, own the Next Generation MMO** _ **Destiny**_ **. The video game belongs to Bungie.**

* * *

You know what I hate about this right now?

Having a legion of pissed off Fallen and Hive Majors right on my tail. As soon as I see some cover, I dived over and huddled against it, loading out my shotgun and slamming the pump. I narrowly dodged a combination of a Shrapnel Launcher and a Hive Boomer, the Solar and Void fragments obscuring the right side of my helmet.

"Goddammit, I swear I'll kill him for this…" Taking a deep breath, I popped out of cover and started blasting the nearby majors with my Burden of Proof XI. Take cover when the knights and captains had their godforsaken weapons pointed at me, shoot at the Dregs and Acolytes, rinse and repeat. Did I mention I _hate_ Shrapnel Launchers and Hive Boomers? No? Well now you know. That was until I ran out of ammo. I crouched back and started to reload my shotgun, only to realize I ran out of Special Ammo. I cursed under my breath.

 _Rez, if you don't get the hell over here and help me, I swear I'll─_

The sudden sounds of a sniper and fusion rifle going off snapped me back to reality, followed by the sounds of ether hissing from Fallen heads and the crackling of the Hive disintegrating to dust. _Who the hell just─?_

"You asked for backup?" Standing before me was a Warlock and a Hunter, both armed with a Susanoo and Stillpiercer respectively. Ohohoho, how much I wanted to get back at the one who started all this. The Hunter had his hand out and instead, I gave him a left jab to the face. He staggered back in a comical fashion, later shaking his head and glaring at me under the Hive-like visor.

"What the hell was that for, Spectre?!"

" _That_ was for making _me_ the bait while you and Silver were trying to grab what we came for!" I yelled in his face, ready to pull out my New Monarchy shotgun and blast his face in. If you thought I ran out of ammo, I was lucky enough an ammo pack was on my side when the shooting stopped.

"All right you two, settle down, will you? You realize you two can settle this in the Crucible…again." Silver gave out a defeated sigh, know how well Rez and I are.

Oh, I forgot to give a proper introduction.

My name, as you already knew, is Spectre. As for my name, I have a good reason. Seeing as how most of my enemies can't see me coming a mile away, whether it's with my guns and/or my Raze-Lighter and Hammer of Sol, it's fair that I had a name to go with my reputation, despite being a Titan and going in guns blazing.

The idiot Hunter standing in front of me is Rez, a pretty sneaky bastard that almost gets away from everything. Quick on the trigger, but mostly sticks to the shadows like the Nightstalker he is. But once you give him a sniper rifle or any heavy-hitting weapon, you'd wish you'd die any other way than what Rez has in store for you. In fact, I don't even know how I even became friends with this guy. Oh wait: he scratched my back, and I scratched his. I got him the handcannon Thorn out of my own sanity, and he owes me a lot of Glimmer.

Silver, on the other hand, is pretty quiet like the Warlock he is. Although I don't get his deal with owls, especially with that helmet he's wearing and cracking his infamous 'Owl' jokes when the moment seemed right. He's just as smart as most Warlocks I've seen on the battlefront, but between the two of us, it's clear I was smarter since I took in a leadership like Commander Zavala. But out of Rez and Silver, it's the Warlock I'm most afraid of. Hell, I don't even know what to run from in the Crucible anymore: Silver's Bolt-Caster and Stormtrance or Rez's Arc Blade. Luckily, Silver doesn't get into the Crucible when Rez and I have one of our infamous 'fights over petty matters'. Either way, Arc damage doesn't like me. It doesn't like me, I hate it against me. Win-win right there.

"I will admit, Rez's plan was a bit…cheap. Seeing as the three of us had our swords ready, we could've taken a more direct approach."

"Hey! I'll let you know it was a good plan! I mean, the heavy hitter out of the three of us is Spectre, so it would be obvious that he'd deal with the majors!"

"Says the Hunter that has jacked up plans to date. If I had to pick between you and Cayde for a partner, I'd already turn to Cayde." I grumbled, wiping off the dirt and dust that settled on my helmet from the shrapnel launcher and hive boomer blasts.

As soon as I saw Rez pull out his Last Word on me, I immediately pointed my Burden of Proof XI at his face, finger on the trigger. Both of us grit our teeth under our helmets, fingers resting on our respective triggers. Friends we may be, but our dislike of each other puts us in mortal rivals. Soon enough, Silver steps in and pulls out his Hawkmoon, undoubtedly chambered with his Luck in the Chamber bullets ready to blast our heads off. Both of us knew how fast Silver can aim his weapons at multiple targets, and that includes us.

"…Crucible it is."

"Agreed, Rez." Both of us put our weapons down, as much as we wanted to just get it over it and get Silver to revive us after we blasted each other in the head. Either we shoot each other in the head or Silver shoots us in the head that hurts ten times as worse as my shotgun blast or Rez's Last Word with Aggressive Ballistics on.

My Ghost, which I had taken to name Primus, pops out of my pack on my side and hovers over my shoulder. "Primus, take us to orbit. We got the relic Banshee needed."

 **"Of course, Guardian."** The Ghost chirped and clicked, starting the timer to get us back into orbit. In the five seconds until we were sent to our ships, I watched as the sun began to set, followed by a blanket of…'snow', as my human ancestors called it covering the ruins of Old Russia. I remember what Primus said every once in a while when we were on patrol: 'The Cosmodrome; a rusting monument before the Collapse. Someday we'll restore this place…right?' Under my helmet, I smirked. Yeah, we'll restore our home. Even if it takes a damn long time to take it back from the Fallen and maybe the Hive.

 _ **-Destiny-**_

"Banshee, we got the relic you asked from us."

"...Have we met?" the old Gunsmith asked, the artificial eyes zooming in on me as I put the relic, a DVALIN-class fusion rifle, down on the table. Just how senile was this Exo? It was then that the Exo noticed the handcannon holstered on my hip just below my knife on my mark. "Wait, I know that gun... Built it myself. How were you even able to...?"

"Banshee."

"I remember. I was just messin' with you, Spectre. No need to be so uptight."

I shrug. "I'll never be able to tell whether he's actually losing his memories or if he's just playing a joke."

"Says the human clone of Commander Zavala." I hear Rez mutter behind my back, followed by the sound of a Force Push igniting and silence following suit. From the corner of my gaze, I saw both Rez and Silver splitting up, undoubtedly to meet up with their individual factions in the Crucible. After the Crumble of the Black Garden, the three of us went our separate ways, but we still stuck with our respective vanguards. Of course, I was with the New Monarchy as Rez and Silver were sided with Dead Orbit and Future War Cult respectively.

"How the gun comin' along, Spectre?"

"What, you mean Skyfall?" I pulled out the handcannon from my hip holster, inspecting the beauty and sleekness it gave. "I'd never doubt your craftiness with guns, both performance and design-wise, but this one really takes the cake. It's everything I'd ever ask for if I was able to craft guns myself. Although reloading the thing takes up precious time."

"You asked for a handcannon that can annihilate any Vandal, Knight and Legionary in one Precision shot with the range of a pulse rifle. That was the best I can do. Don't worry, if the gun starts acting up, just send it to me and I'll see what's wrong with it. On the house for helping me out with finding relic weaponry."

"Thanks, Banshee."

"Oh yeah, before I forget, there's another order here. Can't remember who it's for." The Exo hands me a package and through the window I can see a handcannon very similar to mine, but has a silver-gray finish and a different emblem engraved next to the chamber. Wait, I only ordered for Skyfall, so whose custom handcannon is this...?

"Hello Banshee." I hear a female's voice behind me, chipper and eager as ever despite the crisis we're in with the Taken. Turning my head, I saw a Hunter standing beside me, helmet still on but her hood on her cloak was down. Oddly, she also has a bow and arrow across her back. Based on her voice, she's gotta be human or Awoken. Dammit, the similarities between both species are too in sync with each other...

"Howdy, Guardian."

"Do you have my custom order today?"

"Which one was that again? Because right now there are a lot of orders right now, both Foundry and custom. Aside from Spectre's Foundry orders, you two are the first of the day to collect them." A human I may be, but I think that Banshee's actually telling the truth here. It's Arms Day after all. Then again, I can't tell if this Exo's just pulling another joke on us.

"How could I forget?"

"Maybe you forgot to register your claim for your order?" I suggested, the female Huntress turning towards me. Jackpot.

"Oh crap, I did!"

"What did your custom order look like?"

"It's a handcannon, and it has a silver-like finish, and looks like yours─" I hold out the package in front of her as though to shut her up before she gets too technical with guns. As much as I don't have much of a thing with the chatty type, I can tell a weapon fanatic a mile away before it gets out of hand. "Oh, thank you! I thought Banshee threw this out the window!" she tore open the package like it was nothing and pulled out her handcannon. I was right. Her custom weapon was built the same way as Skyfall, even sharing the same frame. However, the engraved text next to the emblem read out in fine, calligraphic print 'Starfall'. Coincidence much? Maybe.

"Don't go too gung-ho with this, you hear me? Last thing I need is a broken barrel beyond repair."

"Thanks a lot, Banshee! Sorry for putting you through making a custom gun." As though the two had some backstory, she pulled out her Glimmer storage unit and started putting fistfuls on the table. However, Banshee brushed the pile aside like he wasn't interested.

"I don't need this much Glimmer. Only thing that matters is that you keep this thing in working condition."

"But, I owe you a lot of Glimmer to make you build it!"

"I changed my mind. Besides, you'll probably need all that Glimmer to upgrade your gear."

She pouted and started recollecting the pile of Glimmer from the table, her Ghost appearing and putting them back into storage. As I was holstering Skyfall and started to take my leave, the Huntress stopped me.

"Hey, thanks!" I turned around, nodding in response. She stepped down from the stairs. "I'm Reaper." Huh, looks like I'm not the only one that has an odd name as a human. Well, aside from Rez.

"It's nice meeting you, Reaper. I'm─"

"Spectre. You're the leader of The Ancient Vanguard." She interrupts my introduction. Who am I kidding? _Every_ Guardian knows me and The Ancient Vanguard.

"Slayer of Atheon and Skolas, the Swarm Culler, even the Hive Conqueror."

"Now the Slayer of Crota."

"And what about you, miss Reaper?"

"I'm nothing special. Just a freelancer with a hot precision streak and a Fallen Conqueror," she crossed her arms, proving her standards. "I'm not sure if you heard of the 'Predator' from the other Hunters." Now that she mentioned it, Rez did talk about it once, during our Strike with Valus Ta'aurc. "Truth be told, the 'Predator' is me."

"I figured that bow and arrow isn't just for show, nor have I seen any other Hunters use one aside from the Nightstalker Super ability."

"Crafted it myself using a lot of the materials you'd find on Earth, the Moon, Venus and Mars. Plus some weapon parts and armor materials."

"Well, aren't you a crafty one?" I'll admit, never have I seen any Guardians try crafting their own weaponry since I was revived by Primus. I tried to make custom gauntlets after I first got to the Tower, but I failed. Only thing I'm good at is adding more Talent nodes to my weapons and armor...for now. "Still, it's pleasant meeting you."

"Likewise, Spectre." We shook hands and parted ways after we did our business with Banshee-44. As I went down the stairs to meet with Commander Zavala and the other vanguards after our mission on Phobos in the Hall of Guardians, I made a mental note to not forget Reaper. Her armor certainly made her live up to the title of Fallen Conqueror and Predator, but anyone can get that gear with enough marks. Yeah, call me skeptical, but I've seen plenty of Guardians claiming they were something great and fail to stand to their 'titles'. But that bow...something about it seems like something that most Guardians would like to use. Maybe one day I'll have her prove that she lives up to her title. Or I'll have a sparring match with her in the Crucible...

But first, debriefing the Vanguard on the situation with the Taken.

Then that Grudge Match with Rez.

* * *

 **Okay! Sorry if it was a little short here, but it's 1 in the morning and I need to sleep here. Again, I might have to add more to this when I get up because posting a story/chapter with a little over 1k (excluding the pre and post rambles of the chapter) isn't my style anymore. Just seems…unsatisfying.**

 **Edit: Okay, added more as I said! I knew how short it was, but I added more to make it pretty decent overall. Hope you guys enjoyed it! If you'd like more on this, just like, favorite, review and follow this and I'll supply! Supply and demand, readers!**

 **Note: When I mentioned Reaper was a 'freelancer', I envision freelancers as Guardians without a group or clan in-game. Also, the deal with Spectre and his handcannon Skyfall? Homage to James Bond's two recent movies, _Spectre_ and _Skyfall_.**

 **Now, on with the appearance of my characters introduced:**

 **Spectre:**

 **Main Subclass: Sunbreaker (Talent Nodes used: Fusion Grenade, Increased Height (Lift), Suncharge (Hammer of Sol), Stoke the Forge (Sunstrike), Titan Codex III, Flameseeker, Titan Codex V, Cauterize)**

 **WEAPONS** **(In order of usage):**

 **Primary Weapon: Custom-made handcannon 'Skyfall' (Story exclusive, treated as an Exotic weapon), SUROS Regime (Self-alternates between Focused Fire and Spinning Up based on situation), SUROS ARI 41 & 45 (Both Focused Fire), Righteous VII (Same as SUROS ARIs), The First Curse**

 **Special Weapon: Burden of Proof XI (Modified stock variant from Executor Hideo with Full Auto and compatible with High Caliber Rounds and Elemental Transfusion from Susanoo, as well as increased reload time and range than stock Burden of Proof XI models) Immobius, Conviction II, Antinomy XVI,** **customized Ironwreath-D (Black and gray instead of tan and green and implemented Fan Fire from the Last Word; fires rounds that have a similar impact to handcannons)** **, The Chaperone**

 **Heavy Weapon: 'Raze-Lighter' (not to be confused with the actual Raze-Lighter, this one was forged from materialized Solar energy without the jagged edges and shard of Willbreaker), SUROS JLB 47 & 42 (Both Cluster Bomb for crowd control), Objection IV**

 **Ghost Shell: Dread Explorer lookalike**

 **Helmet: Duskrender Type 0/Pandion Type 1 (with the Antigrav Thrusters perk from Empyrean Bellicose)**

 **Gauntlets: Pandion Type 0 (with the Accelerant perk from Immolation Fists)**

 **Chest: Duskrender/Pandion Type 0 (with the And Another Thing perk from the Armamentarium)**

 **Legs: Dunemarchers (with story-exclusive bonus Exotic perk 'Gravity Stabilizer', allowing Spectre to wallrun and slide farther than normal)**

 **Mark: Honor of Cormorant**

 **Artifact: Scales of Eao**

 **Shader: The Old Guard**

 **Bio: A determined and strong veteran since the Crumble of the Black Garden, Spectre was a member of the Fireteams that slayed Atheon, Skolas, and Crota and was there when he saw the coming invasion of the Taken. A human he may be, but he has already earned a worthy reputation as one of his Titan brethren (like Vell Tarlowe, Holborn, Lord Shaxx, Saint-14, and Wei Ning) and can be considered to be the next vanguard to succeed Commander Zavala. However, Spectre declined the offer to take Zavala's place as he views the leader of the Titan vanguard as his mentor, hence his similar well-executed strategies and tactics. Now, he proceeds to take on Oryx and save the Traveler from the Darkness with his friends Rez and Silver-79 as the leader of a group dedicated to train new Guardians freshly picked by their Ghosts known as The Ancient Vanguard and as Fireteam Nero Bianco (Italian for 'Black White'.)**

 **Rez:**

 **Main Subclass: Nightstalker (Talent Nodes used: Vortex Grenade, Triple Jump (Double Jump), Quiver (Shadowshot), Vanish in Smoke (Smoke), Path Unknown, Lockdown, Way of the Fearless, Shadestep)**

 **Primary Weapon: The Last Word, Ace of Spades, Häkke Judith-D and Gaheris-D (Both with Speed Reload, Triple Tap and Armor-Piercing Rounds)**

 **Special Weapon: Stillpiercer (With added Explosive, Skip, Armor-Piercing and High Caliber Rounds for multiple combat versatility), Telesto, The 4th Horseman**

 **Heavy Weapon: The Ash Factory (Variant with Tripod and Tracking perks), 'Dark-Drinker' (not the exotic version of Dark-Drinker,** **this one was forged from materialized Void energy, no shard of Willbreaker and is more sharper than the Exotic one was** **), SUROS JLB 42 & 47 (Same as Spectre's JLB launchers)**

 **Ghost Shell: Vanguard Shell**

 **Helmet: Aspriet 1.0**

 **Gauntlets: Neuroghast 1.0**

 **Chest: Aspriet 1.1**

 **Legs: Heliopause Boots**

 **Cloak: Solar Flayer Mantle**

 **Artifact: Dredgen Yor's Rose**

 **Shader: The Old Guard**

 **Bio: A friend of Spectre's since they took down Sepiks Prime, Rez is, like his friend, a human veteran since the Crumble of the Black Garden and the slayings of Atheon, Skolas and Crota. Despite his insanely stupid plans and laidback personality, he's no slouch on the trigger of a gun. With Spectre and Silver, he is a part of The Ancient Vanguard and acts as the 'Cayde-6' of the group. That is true, seeing as how easily Cayde and Rez are risktakers with dumb plans in the field in both vanguards. That and they are buddies.**

 **Silver:**

 **Main Subclass: Stormcaller (Talent Nodes used: Storm Grenade, Balanced Glide (Glide), Ionic Blink (Stormtrance), Rising Storm (Thunderstrike), Arcane Force, Feedback, Divine Order, Perpetual Charge)**

 **Primary Weapon:** **Tlaloc,** **Hawkmoon, Omolon Tuonela SR4 (Variant with Third Eye, Extended Mag and Rescue Mag)**

 **Special Weapon: Susanoo,** **Häkke Strongbow-D, Omolon Thesan FR4**

 **Heavy Weapon: 'Bolt-Caster' (Same as the above swords, forged from materialized Arc energy and has no shard of Willbreaker)**

 **Ghost Shell: Brave Shell**

 **Helmet: Haliaetus II**

 **Gauntlets: Haliaetus II**

 **Chest: Heart of the Praxic Fire (Praise the Sun Exotic perk replaced with Lightning Rod from The Impossible Machines)**

 **Legs: Haliaetus II**

 **Bond: Ebonthorn Bond**

 **Artifact: The Traitor's Die**

 **Shader: SUROS Minimalist**

 **Bio: A Warlock taking under Ikora and Toland's work, Silver-79 is an Exo dedicated to his studies like all Warlocks, but takes it seriously and sometimes cracks a joke. Unlike Rez, Spectre met Silver upon seeking knowledge on the exotic bounty A Light in the Dark, much to the Warlock's fear of the weapon's dark history. As a part of the fireteams with Spectre and Rez, Silver takes on a more logical route and points out flaws in Spectre's tactics, even claiming that Omolon's weaponry were 'sheer perfection' and more damaging than normal bullets used by the conventional weapons, but occasionally uses bullets. He is also one of the Warlocks to not go insane during their studies, especially with Toland's work. However, he is not a permanent member of The Ancient Vanguard, but rather an honorary member since he finds his studies more important than anything else. Well, his studies and his friends who he has to calm down before they get out of hand outside the Crucible.**

 **Reaper:**

 **Main Subclass: Bladedancer (Talent Nodes used: Flux Grenade, Blink (Double Jump), Vanish (Arc Blade), Escape Artist (Blinkstrike), Path Unknown, Shadowjack, Way of the Drifter, Stalker)**

 **Primary Weapon: Custom-made handcannon 'Starfall' (Story exclusive, treated as an Exotic weapon)**

 **Special Weapon:** **hand-built bow and arrow 'Night Predator' (Story exclusive, treated as a Legendary weapon), Häkke Tamar-D**

 **Heavy Weapon: 'Raze-Lighter' (same as Spectre's 'Raze-Lighter')**

 **Ghost Shell: Frontier Shell**

 **Helmet: Celestial Nighthawk (Big Game Exotic Perk replaced with a combination of Unstable Current from Mask of the Third Man and Sensor Pack from Knucklehead Radar)**

 **Gauntlets: Kallipolis Grips**

 **Chest: Crest of Alpha Lupi**

 **Legs: Kallipolis Boots**

 **Cloak: Strength of the Pack**

 **Artifact: The Pahanin Errata**

 **Shader: Superblack**

 **Bio: Like most of her Hunter brothers and sisters, Reaper was a lone wolf that survived in the wilderness and ruins of Earth and found her way to The City like all new Guardians. However, she spent most of her patrols perfecting the ways of the Hunter both old and new, from tracking her prey to surviving out in the wilderness. In a way, Reaper is as mysterious as the Exo Stranger, but has a known reputation for silently hunting her enemies using a bow and arrow that grants her similar abilities to the Nightstalker subclass, thus being known as the 'Predator' among the Hunters. She was also one of the many Hunters that hunted down the House of Wolves after they broke free from the Reef, but spent most of the time before and since the Crumble of the Black Garden working missions for the Cryptarchs and the Vanguard. Despite her lone wolf demeanor, she is somewhat forgetful and clumsy outside the battlefront. After The Ancient Vanguard gained its fame and reputation, Reaper views Spectre as an idol and someone she wanted to be.**


	2. I-II: Grudge Match

**Hey guys, I'm back with a new chapter to continue off where the intro began! So far, I appreciate the followers and the review The Crimson Commando gave! I'll be sure to keep your offer in mind should I need it! Oh, and I'll give you the same treatment, so don't hesitate to ask if you need to use any of mine!**

 **Okay, enough credit for now. Let's see who comes out on top between Spectre and Rez! Now I wish Destiny has a 1v1 Crucible match, and it was named 'Grudge Match'...**

 _ **Chapter II: Grudge Match**_

* * *

 _Shores of Time, Venus_

As soon as I heard Lord Shaxx start announcing the match's participants the moment I transmatted on my side of the arena, I was ready for settling this with Rez. With the flagpole in hand, I stabbed it into the ground, and down came the Alpha team banner. Thankfully, Shaxx now allowed one-on-one matches to all Guardians. Well, enough of that. Time to vent out my anger on Rez for his incredibly stupid plan earlier. Damn moron, thinking he can make the leader/commander bait for the enemy to distract while having him and Silver take the artifact…

 _"Grudge Match. Eliminate and humiliate your rival!"_ I hear Shaxx's voice over the feed in my helmet, followed by the rules and modifiers' icons flashing on my screen. Chaff, Exposure and Trickle among three new modifiers. Great. With Chaff and Exposure, I can deal with, but Trickle? Screw that! That's a tactical Guardian's worst nightmare! And knowing Rez, he's using Trickle to his advantage. Goddamn bastard…

One of them was a crossbone using SUROS auto rifles instead of bones. I knew what this was: Locked Weapons. What that meant was that a certain weapon type was unavailable to use during the match while others were allowed. And for today's Grudge Match, Auto Rifles, Pulse Rifles, Fusion Rifles, Machine Guns and Rocket Launchers were banned for this match. Typical, seeing as Rez wanted a handcannon, shotgun, sniper rifle and sword fight.

The second modifier had a hand holding a handcannon. This one was known as 'Luck of the Draw'. What Luck of the Draw does is that in junction with Locked Weapons, the modifier forces us to use a specific weapon type for a specific amount of time before it resets, and shuffles to another available weapon type. Think of the modifier as a deck of cards, and one of those cards is your trump card. Or in this case, your favored weapon type.

Last one was known simply as 'Ammo Regenerator', which refills our ammo if we start to run low or fire off any number of rounds. The icon this time was the ammo crate normally found in the other Crucible matches. Looks like it's no ammo drops this time.

Right now, Luck of the Draw conducted itself and set out the weapons for the first minute. Handcannon. I know how easily Skyfall can snap off a Knight's head in one precision shot, but I shudder to imagine what it can do to a Guardian. Plus, Skyfall is the only handcannon in my inventory; all my other handcannons are in the vault, and the only other primary weapons I have on is my SUROS Regime, 41, and 45 auto rifles. Wish I brought First Curse with me… Heh, Skyfall might as well end up in a similar ban to Red Death anyway if I used this thing in the Crucible.

I sprinted from my spawn point, taking in my surroundings with the Vex architecture. During my time during patrols, I learned to mind my surroundings in case of any surprise attacks. Honestly, to me, Hunters are just the same as the Fallen. I mean, cloaks and knives? Tch, next thing you know, the Hive and Warlocks are the same as well as comparing us Titans with the Cabal. As soon as I was about to reach the center, I stopped sprinting and pulled out Skyfall, spinning it in a similar fashion as the Tex Mechanica handcannons. From behind my helmet, my eyes darted left to right, up and down, and all possible directions for any red lights. Knowing Rez, he's probably settled down and started to…

 _Boom!_

I ducked for cover, avoiding the explosive round and preventing my shields from being punctured by the explosion. Did I forget to mention that Luck of the Draw differs for the Guardians affected by it? I'm stuck with handcannons for the next minute, and Rez got his hands on snipers.

 _Boom!_

Another sniper shot, this time it was onto me, the evidence parts of the block I'm taking cover behind disintegrating. I summoned Primus and finetuned my Sunbreaker to deal with the explosive rounds, sacrificing my recovery for armor and agility. Knowing him, he's using Stillpiercer; never saw it leave his hands since he acquired it from Banshee. Thankfully I'm using my Pandion Type 0 that lessens Void damage. Now, how to get behind him without him noticing…

 _ **Rez's POV**_

Damn! I thought I got him that time! As soon as my scope didn't register a hit from my sniping nest, despite the explosion radius from the bullet, it was time to step it up. Ejecting my almost empty magazine filled with explosive rounds and unloading the bullet in the chamber, I reloaded Stillpiercer with skip rounds, slamming the puppies in and loading the first round. Thankfully, my helmet's 'third eye' served as a ballistics calculator for my skip rounds. As soon as I aimed the scope, a trajectory beam revealed itself. Aiming Stillpiercer a bit, the ricochet marker turned red. Bull's eye.

"Thought you could hide forever, Spectre?!" I called out, pulling the trigger. The ceramic-jacketed round bouncing off the wall I aimed at and into the corner Spectre was hiding. As soon as I heard a scream of pain, I grinned in triumph. My helmet flashed the First Blood medal, and I knew it was a confirmed kill. Boom, headshot!

"What now, Spectre?!" I laughed, savoring my triumph. That was until I saw a shadow making its way towards me. I stopped my display of the first kill and I looked through my scope. How the hell did he─?! A goddamn clone?! _Again?!_ How many times do I keep falling for that damn trick?!

Spectre was running towards my position, but something about his gauntlets was different. And I mean literally. It's still Pandion Type 0, but the plate on his left shoulder was missing. In fact, _the damn thing is now on his arm like a shield_ , larger than what it was before! He began using a Phalanx's tactic of hiding behind a shield and blindfiring at me with Skyfall as he began sprinting towards me. I evaded the bullets that were close to hitting me. Bad idea, buddy. I aimed Stillpiercer once more, the trajectory markers on and fired. The bullet ricocheted off the wall again, and I hoped this time the bullet landed the real deal. Wait, Trickle's on, so he wouldn't be able to use his tactical gear for a while, and that includes his decoys. Didn't think that one through, dude.

What I saw after pulling the trigger was a blur. Next thing I knew, I was shot in the head! "Son of a bitch!" I fell backfirst to the ground, staring up at the ceiling as my helmet flashed the typical 'Guardian Down' alert. What the hell killed me!? I checked the top right corner of the alert, and my jaw dropped.

It said 'misadventure' before it reassigned to 'Skip Round, Stillpiercer'. How did he cause the round to bounce off his shield?! More importantly, _just how_ was he able to move his shield fast enough to prevent the shot from behind and hit _me_!? Dammit, now all the Hunters are gonna know me as 'the Hunter who got killed by his own skip round'!

From my Ghost's view, I saw Spectre approach the Ghost, the shield still on his arm and knelt down. "Karma's a bitch, Rez. Haven't I told you that before?" he then proceeded to draw a line across his throat with his fingers, "it's your neck on the line. And don't think I'll go easy on you." He pointed Skyfall at my body and shot me point blank in the head, ensuring I was downed and respawn longer than normal.

 _"Ouch, that's gonna leave a mark!"_ I heard Shaxx's voice as soon as I respawned, and I can imagine the laughing faces of the Guardians watching the match. Grrrr, damn his tactical planning! Luck of the Draw shuffled, leaving me with my personal favorite, Handcannons. Whipping out The Last Word, I sprinted back to where Spectre killed me and found him standing there, shield at the ready and Raze-Lighter stabbed in the ground.

"Well…shit."

"You're right about this one, Rez." He pulled out his sword from the ground, resting the blunt edge on his shoulder. "We're buddies and all, but this time, I won't just forgive you easily. Because if it were up to me with that plan of yours, I'd have _you_ be the bait."

"C'mon man, it was just once you had to deal with a mob of Hive and Fallen Majors."

" _Once?!_ That's the _thirteenth_ time you made me distract a large group of Majors during the missions!" he roared, causing me to step back from his lion-like yell, "Enough talk Rez, get ready for 'kicking your ass from your commander 101'!"

He charged towards me and swung, but I was able to evade using Shadestep and fired with Last Word. Again, Spectre blocked my shots with his shield and swung where I stood. Again, Shadestep away from the searing heat of the sword and empty the last bullets in the Last Word until he blocked it. Thanks to my gauntlets, I was able to reload The Last Word fairly quickly, loading it before I─

 _Whump!_

I was kicked over from where I was reloading, rolling on the ground until I was close to the edge. I got back up, adjusting my balance since I was mere inches from falling into a Vex portal. As soon as I saw Spectre, he was next to a conjunctioning portal, arms crossed as if he knows…something I…

The sound of a small hiss reached my helmet, and I knew what was going on. "Oh, you sneaky little─"

 _Boom!_

 _ **Spectre's POV**_

What, did he think I snuck a fusion grenade on him? I'm not that cheap on using offensive grenades on other Guardians in the Crucible. Rez can't even tell the difference between a Solar fusion grenade and a tactical kinetic pull grenade. I heard his muffled 'Oh, you sneaky little─' groan before he was pulled into the portal. And right where I want him. As soon as I heard him coming through the gate next to me, I snatched him by the cloak and chucked him against the wall, leaving a crater in the wall. With him trying to get up, I whipped out my survival knife in my mark, tossing it before throwing it the same as a Gunslinger. The knife pinned his cloak against the wall, and Rez tried to pull it out from the wall to free himself. Yeah, good luck trying to get the knife out the wall, because you'll need a Titan's strength to get it out.

"Ugh, cheap shot, Spectre!"

"Now you're saying I'm cheap? Not really. It's called 'strategy', something you both lack and fail at. Because I'm not the one who uses skip rounds to hit a decoy and get killed by it." I turned away from the pinned down Hunter, walking away and leaving him there. My audio receptors in my helmet picked up a sound from Rez, and I turned, throwing him a 'surprise' present and dodging a barrage of high caliber rounds from the Last Word. Since my shield is still on my arm, I used it to defend myself from the incoming surprise.

"Oh you son of a bi─!"

"Checkmate."

 _Kaboom!_

From the slot in my shield, I saw his body being launched into the air and flying into a pole. What happens next, I don't think it's appropriate. You know what? Screw it, I'll put it in bluntly. He got hit in the junk as soon as he hit the top of the pole and I know that a lot of the spectators would empathize with him by grimacing in mock-pain, given he was hit where the sun doesn't shine.

" _Why won't you just kill me?!_ " I heard him call out from where he hit the pole after he whimpered painfully as he fell to the ground. Before he hit it, I kicked him in the face away from me, sending him into another wall and allowing the structure to collapse on him.

" _Good work Guardian, your Light is strong."_ I hear Shaxx's voice on the feed announce, as well as my HUD going haywire with the victory screen. Undoubtedly, I can imagine the many Guardians watching the match go wild with another victory of mine. My K/D ratio was two to one, and yes, the decoy counted as a death. My reward from the match was an Eyasluna and a legendary engram for my class armor. The handcannon transmatted into my free hand and raised it up for the spectators to see, firing a couple of victory rounds.

Knowing Rez, he'll cool down after this match…but not anytime soon considering the most humiliating death he had of having his own skip round hit him in a ricochet and getting hit in the junk by a pole. Meh, it's what he deserved for those thirteen times of using me as bait.

 _The Tower, Earth_

All the spectators watching Spectre and Rez's match were in a chaotic symphony of cheers and howls of laughter, both from Spectre's victory and earning Eyasluna to Rez's final death.

Among the spectators was Cayde, who clapped as soon as he saw the decisive victory. "And that's why Spectre and Rez's matches are better than most we see here, Zavala."

"I will admit, Cayde, Spectre is an honorable Titan amongst us. His tactics and efficiency proved vital to his combat. No matter the method, that is a Titan victory." The Awoken vanguard commented, arms behind his back as usual.

"Are you kidding me?! Your Titan used an incendiary grenade which _launched_ one of my boys into a pole and got hit in the junk! How is that 'honor'?!"

"Cayde, it's a Grudge Match. The rules are to _eliminate_ and _humiliate_ your rival. I will not consider the last kill as honorable by Titan standard, but most of what was done was what a true Titan utilizes."

"I suppose that last kill was deserving for your Hunter, Cayde. After all, he is basically you in Spectre's vanguard." The Warlock Vanguard pointed out, eyes still on her studies, but occasionally looking over at the match's results. Silver was next to her side, studying Toland's journal intently and proposing some of his theories on the areas Toland never completed.

"Yeah, that and Rez uses Spectre as bait during their Strikes. I mean, isn't that the whole point of the Titans, Zavala? Being walking tanks?"

"To some of us, that may be true. Remember, Cayde: there are two types of Titans. One is that they are walking tanks, and another is the wall against which the Darkness breaks."

"Not this speech again…" The Hunter Vanguard muttered under his breath, preparing for a lecture on the Titans. He looked over at Ikora and her Exo disciple, who were still indulged in Toland's journal. The Warlocks don't seem to mind the speech, and are still deep in their studies.

 _I gotta get out of this Tower._

* * *

In the Tower's Quarters, Reaper was in her individual quarters, settling down with a cup of coffee while she watched the match. Even though she felt sympathy for her fellow Hunter, it was really the Titan she rooted for. She was happy that Spectre taught Rez a lesson, since she was there when she saw Spectre get cornered by the Fallen and Hive Majors.

 **"Still getting over your meeting with your hero, Reaper?"** Her Ghost, known as Rex, joked, catching the Bladedancer off guard.

"I guess you can say that, Rex." She turned in her seat where she watched the match and took off her Celestial Nighthawk, facing the Ghost. She was definitely human, with silky shoulder-length brunette hair and gray eyes as well as a beautiful face to match. Hell, any Guardians who've seen her face would mistake her for a civilian than a Hunter.

 **"So you're interested in your Titan in shining armor?"**

Reaper flushed a deep red. "Why would I be curious about him? He's practically a Commander Zavala!"

 **"So what does meeting him in person and watching all of his matches since he came to the Crucible mean, hm?"**

"Meeting him in person was just a pure coincidence!"

 **"Suuuure it was."** Rex pointed out, her eye seemingly taunting the Huntress. **"Still doesn't explain why you watch his Crucible matches."**

"It's interesting to watch, little light."

 **"Don't do that."** Rex deadpanned, followed by the Ghost being pushed away. **"By the way, there are bounties up from the Cryptarchs and Xander. Think you're up for it?"**

Sighing, Reaper turned off the screen on her desk and stood up, stretching as she grabbed her Celestial Nighthawk and put it on. She glanced over on the table and found her new handcannon sitting there. She smiled under her exotic helmet, ready to test out this weapon from Banshee. She took Starfall off the table and spun the cylinder, holstering it on her hip and walked out the door, ready to get back into the wilderness of Earth.

Next stop for Reaper?

The Cosmodrome.


	3. I-III: Enter the Taken

**Note: This chapter is out of order from what happens after Spectre meets Reaper, since we just jumped into the Grudge Match instead of seeing Spectre converse with the Vanguard and Eris about the Taken. Also, kudos to Destinyhead123 for reminding me to cover what was missing and why this fanfic is set after "The Coming War". Well, here's a more just reason: I'm trying my best to make an adaption of _The Taken King_ , with some added parts to make it enjoyable from a fanfiction perspective.**

 **The Crimson Commando, if you're reading this, then please note that I included one of your OCs in this chapter, seeing as I have no one else to consider a guest here. Please don't think I stole from you.**

 **Enjoy.**

 _ **Chapter III: Enter the Taken**_

* * *

 _The Tower, Hall of Guardians_

"My contacts near Saturn say the weapon only fired once."

"It's not like the Queen to attack a superior force."

The Vanguards looked over at the projection of the Dreadnaught that Fireteam Nero Bianco recovered from Phobos, discussing how to deal with this new threat to the Solar System. The room darkened to enhance the details of the Cabal hologram, and the appearance of the Hive ship brought a menacing ambience to the hall, even if it wasn't the real deal. When they saw the Hive Tombships during their times before they were roped into their positions today, they were just the same as the new Guardians. Now, this new Hive ship sent chills down their spine.

"Now could she have known? How could anyone?" Ikora added, standing on her side of the table while Cayde and Zavala stood on the opposite side. Soon enough, the Vanguards heard the sounds of armored boots and turned towards the entrance. Spectre, with Primus hovering over his shoulder, came walking towards the three, stopping at the far end of the table and saluting his Vanguard.

"Sir."

"Spectre, it's good to see you alive." Zavala dismissed Spectre from his salute, a faint smile on his stern face to know his 'second-in-command' made it out of Phobos with his team.

"Hey, look who's back!" Cayde crossed his arms.

"Here, I trust you may remove your helmet. You are an honorary member of our vanguard since you represent and lead your own vanguard." Ikora requested, seeing as a ground rule for the vanguards here in the Hall are required to remove their helmets.

Nodding, the Vanguard representing both the Ancient Vanguard and their leader reached for the side of his helmet and tapped the lock. Streams of air hissed out the sides of the Duskrender helmet, followed by some clicking that loosened the helmet's grip on Spectre's head. Spectre put his hands on the front and back of his Type 0 helmet, fingers in the spaces between his neck and helmet and pried both sides open gently, allowing him to let him take it off.

The Vanguards watched as strands of dirty blonde hair tumbled out of the helmet, followed by a youthful face of someone in their early twenties. However, it was ruined by a faint scar running from his right cheek to the corner of his lip, resembling one half of a Cheshire grin. The result of a Fallen blade piercing through his helmet's visor early in his career as a Guardian. His right eye was covered by the strands of hair that tumbled out and found their way back to place, as the free eye revealed steel blue-gray eyes. The Vanguard for the Ancient Vanguard set his Duskrender helmet down on the table.

"Spectre, during your encounter on Phobos, were you able to acquire information on these 'Taken'?" Zavala inquired.

 **"We did, Zavala. So far, based on what we saw and found, the Cabal's numbers were dwindling while the Taken's were rising at a rapid rate."** Primus clicked and whirred, his shell opening as he spoke. **"Skyburners, Dust Burners, and the Blind Legion were losing about half of their troops to the Taken."**

"But it's not just Cabal. I saw Hive in the mix: Acolytes, Knights, even Wizards and Thrall. Oddest thing about the Centurions and Wizards were their shields, they're Arc and Void damage now."

Taking in the information from both Spectre and Primus, the Warlock Vanguard turned to Zavala. "We need a Warlock inside the Dreadnaught."

Cayde rolled his artificial eyes, knowing exactly what's coming. "Here we go…" He glanced over at Spectre and smiled, seeing as the leader of the Ancient Vanguard simply face palmed with the same notion that Cayde had. Even though Cayde was a Hunter and Spectre was a Titan, they both hated the fact that when the Human female and Awoken male start to argue, they wish they weren't in the Hall.

"Our first priority must be to protect the City. Spectre and his team got a good look at Phobos. Whatever it was, it turned Cabal against Cabal, wiped their base out in minutes. How long would _we_ last?" Zavala argued, jabbing a finger on the table as Ikora turned her back on him, thinking about the situation.

"Until we understand what we're dealing with—"

"As much as we're both trying to find out what the hell we're dealing with and defending the City are high priority, maybe we should all consider—" Spectre counter-objected.

The four heard a sound from the entrance to the Hall and watched a green orb race across the table and into the Cabal projector, removing both the Dreadnaught's hologram and the red glow and replacing the room with a sinister green glow. They turned their heads and found Eris Morn standing hunched over next to the steps, hands still in their 'orb-holding' position. Never before had they allowed Eris in the Hall of Guardians, despite her involvement in the slaying of Crota. Now, something during the mission on Phobos brought her in here.

"They are Taken."

"Not another 'vague oracle' monologue again." Spectre muttered, earning a Hive-like death glare from the corrupted Awoken. "…I take that back."

"Eris… Get your rock off my map."

"It hasn't spoken since Crota fell," the sole survivor of an attack on Crota started, hand extended towards the Hive shard as though it was sacred. "It speaks now because Oryx is here. Come to fulfill the final covenant of his son."

"Oh great. Just what I needed. Another Crota to fight."

"But, why fight the Cabal?"

Eris turned towards the Warlock Vanguard. "Not fighting. Taking. Controlling their will." The green glow from the shard was removed, and Eris turned to see Cayde remove the orb from the projector, allowing the Dreadnaught and red glow to return. To both the humans and Awoken in the room, the only Exo was remotely unfazed by Eris's three-eyed gaze.

"So we focus on his army, kill these Taken until he's all that's left." Zavala suggested as the Hunter Vanguard began to inspect the shard Eris threw into the hologram.

"Whatever you kill, Oryx will replace."

"And I assume this isn't just talking about the Taken Psions duplicating themselves." Spectre deadpanned.

"The Dreadnaught, then. How do we get past that weapon?"

"Without ending up like the Awoken." Zavala included, and the five fell to silence. Spectre crossed his arms and tapped his armored boot against the floor, thinking of possible ways to get through.

As soon as the entire room fell to silence, Cayde looked up. "I gotta go…see about a ship." He tossed the orb-encased shard at Eris like a tennis ball before walking away from the table, and she caught it before it actually hit her hand.

"Cayde, our discussion has not yet concluded."

"Oh, I know. That's why I'm leaving." And just like that, he left the Hall, leaving his fellow Vanguards and Eris behind to ponder on the situation.

Spectre, on the other hand, was analyzing the intel Primus acquired during his fireteam's mission. Even if the Cabal was his enemy, they didn't deserve what fate befell most of them. _Dammit, I need Silver to help out on these things. Analysis on biological matter like that goo in the base isn't my strong type. Wish I brought a sample for him to analyze, but who knows what it can do to Guardians…_ Compared to the enemies he's faced before, the Taken has to be hell now, especially with the Taken Phalanxs.

"Primus, what do you think that goo is; membrane or symbiote?"

 **"Spectre, I'll be quite honest with you, it appeared to be both. While it isn't as sentient as you or I, but it's like a mindless drone sent to take whatever it can to Oryx. I mean, look at the Taken: all they did was go after you mindlessly shooting. No form of intelligence left on the host. I don't know about you, but I feel that the goo is part membrane, part symbiote, and part parasite."**

"Think we should bring Silver to study what we discovered? _Without_ having him actually look at the stuff?"

 **"Let's hope he didn't sneak in a sample of that goo while we weren't looking."** Spectre stopped looking at the data and looked at his Ghost. **"…Did I say something?"**

"…Shit." He grabbed Duskrender from the table and slapped it on, closing both front and back to secure it to his neck armor. He ran out the Hall and for the quarters, confusing the Vanguards and Eris.

 _ **Spectre's POV**_

Dammit Silver, what were you thinking?! I know you're a Warlock and all, but are you this _stupid_?! Especially with a threat we don't even know about?! As I sprinted back to my fireteam's quarters, running past some Guardians and knocking some out of my way (unintentionally, of course), my mind was running on what would happen if that stuff corrupted Silver. My heart raced with fear, and I don't want him to suffer the same as the Cabal did. He's a vital part of the team!

I reached our quarters and started pounding my fist on the door. "Silver?! Silver!" I called out, hoping I wasn't too late.

Nothing. I reached for the knob and started twisting it. Locked. Hey, don't ask me why the doors are much like the Pre-Golden Age ones and not sliding doors. "Silver, open up!" I pounded my fist against the metal door again, this time more violent. " _Silver!_ " when banging on the door didn't work, I started to ram into it, but it had no effect seeing as the metal was really resilient to most impacts.

No response once, you're playing a prank on me.

No response twice, you're starting to piss me off.

No response three times, that's it, time's up. Nope. No more chances. Strike three, you're through. I'm coming in there. I CAN'T TAKE IGNORANCE ANYMORE!

Replacing Sunbreaker with my Striker subclass, I had Primus instantly charge my Storm Fist and instantly I felt the Arc energy envelop my fist. Send me the bill for this next part. At least I'll have an excuse for property damage: 'saving my Fireteam member/best friend from an unknown membrane/symbiote/parasitic goo that he snuck in to study of a threat we know little of'. Yeah, that'll work.

 _SCRUUUNNNCH!_

I buried my Storm Fist into the door, puncturing through the metal like it was a very thin sheet of Plasteel and reaching for the knob on the other side. I tore it off and ripped the door off the hinges, followed by my other hand ripping it in half. I know that Guardians in the hallway would notice what I'm doing, but one of the Guardians living in the quarters on this floor saw what I was doing─and possibly what's going on. It was 20/20 from Fireteam Dragon, an Exo Titan that knows a lot of medical attention.

"Silver!" I saw him lying on the floor, body twitching like the robot he technically is and sparks flying from his chest. Among the Exo on the floor, the quarters was a complete mess. It looked as though he was struggling with some enemy. Or something. I knelt down and began to inspect him, noting a pale-blue substance on his chest armor. Wait, this is…

"What the hell is that stuff?!" I heard the Exo medic point out behind me.

"WHOA!" The substance came to life and jumped onto my visor, blinding me and preventing me from seeing. I clawed at my helmet, but the goo just kept slipping through my gloves. It became even worse when the stuff began to leak into my helmet's visor, forcing me to hit the emergency release on Duskrender. The helmet's locks released and swung the back of the helm up, allowing me to throw my head back and escape from it. Quickly, I closed the helmet and had the helmet's neck region close, erecting a containment sphere around the contaminated helmet and trapping the damned thing in it. Scrambling to my feet, I watched as the sentient goo try to free itself from its containment sphere, but to no avail. My heart races and cold sweat beaded my forehead from the blur of events.

"20, help Silver out!" I barked, and immediately the Exo knelt down to help his fellow machine. Primus appeared from my pack, "Primus, get Zavala on the line and tell him we have a problem!"

 **"Already on it!"** he frantically whirs, sending off an alert to my Vanguard to let him know what's going on. C'mon Silver, don't become Taken on me!

"Spectre, get over here and help me hold him down!" 20/20 calls my attention, and I knelt down across from him. I started to restrain his twitching, using my control cuffs on him to stop him from further movement, "Whatever that stuff was, it tampered with his core functions and combat coding! I'm gonna have to force reboot his core, but I need you to supply enough Arc energy to jumpstart him after the reboot!"

I watched as the Exo started to stabilize the flying sparks from Silver's chest using what I can assume to be Exo repair/'medical' tools, keeping them down as 20/20 opened a plate on his head. Most Exos I've known, 20/20 included, has their reboot button in their chests, but can be rebooted by a device they keep with them. However, Silver was one of the older Exos, and therefore didn't carry the device to remotely reboot. His model dates back about a hundred years after the Golden Age, where Exos' reboot buttons were behind a plate in their heads.

He hit the reboot button, and the blue light that made up Silver's artificial eyes faded out, followed by the voice box's signature glow.

"Spectre, we only got a minute before he shuts down for good, so jumpstart him already!" again, Primus recharged my Storm Fist, my hands practically pulsating with Arc energy. I tightened my hands into a fist, and I was close to using my hands as a makeshift defibrillator until the Exo Titan stopped me. "Are you insane?! That much Arc energy will fry his circuits for good!"

"Then how much should I use?!"

"Three gigavolts of Arc energy! That's how much an Exo model like Silver needs to reboot!" my Ghost began to adjust the amount of Arc energy in my hands into the amount 20/20 said. As soon as that was over, I placed my palms on his chest.

"Clear!" I dispersed the energy, and I heard the faint sound of electricity powering up a machine in my ears. I looked down. No blue glow from eyes or voice box. Silver laid there much like a statue. "C'mon, c'mon!"

I had Primus recharge Storm Fist again, but this time I winced painfully. Never before had I used Primus to help me instantly recharge my melee attacks, and I knew the risk was coming to me. The faster I recharge my melee ability one after the other, the weaker I become.

"Clear!" Instead of repeating the last attempt, I pounded on his chest with the Arc energy just like when I'd use Fist of Havoc. The sound became louder this time, but still no glow or movement. "That's it! I'm raising the energy to three and a half gigavolts!"

 **"Spectre, you can't! You'll strain yourself!"**

"Your Ghost has a point, Spectre. If you're gonna insta-charge for the fourth time, you'll surely wipe out!"

I ignore both 20/20 and Primus's pleas to not let me insta-charge again and I did, charging up for what has to be my last attempt to revive him. My eyesight began to blur, and I felt sluggish. But I have to pull through for Silver's sake. Raising my fists over my head, I pounded on his chest once more. Please work…!

The sound of robotic coughs filled the quarters and I looked down. Silver's blue artificial eyes and voice box glow returned, and he sat up right after the nine and a half gigavolts of Arc shocks. He realized that his reboot's cover was open and closed it himself, followed by clutching his head as though he had an Exo's equivalent of a headache.

"Ugh…what happened?"

"That goo happened, that's what." I pointed towards my contaminated Duskrender helmet for Silver to see. "Because you _had_ to get a sample of that stuff, you owe me a new Duskrender to replace my contaminated one. Helmet or 120 Marks. Your pick."

"Spectre, we need to know what we're up against. We need to have some form of─"

"I don't want to hear it, Silver. Ever heard of 'curiosity killed the cat'?" I asked, and he exhaled through his synthetic nostrils defeatingly. "By the Traveler, you're just like Ikora. Because if I didn't realize that you collected a sample to analyze on your own, you'd already go on a rampage on the Tower and start spreading the Taken membrane to all of us."

"'Taken'?"

"Long story." I looked over to 20/20, who began analyzing his fellow Exo with another Exo gadget. "20, see if you can patch up Silver's combat coding."

"Already got it covered. He can't fight until I patch it up, but he can continue with his normal functions with some synchronization. What are you going to do now, Spectre?"

I had Primus summon one of my spare helmets, a Pandion Type 1 to replace Duskrender and put it on. It doesn't feel as comfortable as Duskrender, but this has to do until Silver gets me another Duskrender or the Legendary Marks to cover it. Because knowing that stuff on Duskrender, it already won't leave and will get me if I put it on. Believe me, I'm watching it settle into my favorite helmet and I swore it 'hissed' at me, claiming it to be its and its alone. That's…creepy.

"I have a Grudge Match to settle."


	4. I-IV: Challenged by a Reaper

**Before we start this chapter, I'd like to give a shoutout to The Crimson Commando for reassuring me that I was free to use any of his OCs if I needed to. As to make things fair, you, The Crimson Commando, are free to use Spectre, Rez, Silver and/or Reaper to your** _ **Destiny**_ **fanfics. Hell, bring the whole crew around in them!**

 **Okay, it's time for a confession. That whole 'things that I have a lot of explaining to do' bit? Yeah. It's time to put it out there.**

 **The reason why I've spent a long time since I posted** _ **Reloaded**_ **until** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **was posted is** **because I had to fill in some shoes for my cousin. Since August of last year, he was actually writing a novel that he planned to release to the public. But, when February rolled in, he came to me and asked me to finish it for him. You see, he wrote it without his parents knowing (since they expect him to prioritize studies first), they found out and they weren't happy. They gave him a choice to either continue what he was doing and not get help when he reaches college, or to just give it up. So, he gave it to me to finish under the condition that I put him in the foreword. He came to me because his writing and mine are very similar to one another. Plus, I was very interested in it and I wanted to be involved.**

 **So yeah, that's my excuse for not updating since February. Basically, I'm picking up the slack where my cousin left off so I can get his goal to the finish line. I've been passed the torch. And I'm gonna light the fire with it. All that's left is to edit and find a publisher that can send it to the public.**

 _ **Chapter IV: Challenged by a Reaper**_

* * *

Just when things couldn't get any worse at all, it just did.

Right now, Rez is being a prick since his ridiculous humiliation during the Grudge Match (which I don't regret causing at all) last week, and Silver's still recovering from that Taken goo incident. 20/20 said that his recovery is 30% done, and he should be back in the field faster than the projected timeframe if he gets some materials to further boost the machine he has hooked on. Oh, and he got me a new Duskrender Type 0 to replace the old one, thanks to a favor he owes from Zavala. Oh, and guess who has to go out and get the items 20/20 needs? Me.

Right now, I'm in the Cosmodrome on Patrol, working my way to get more Rep for NM and the Vanguard. That and I'm also low on Spinmetal in my inventory right now. I armed myself with my SUROS ARI 45, Immobius, and my Raze-Lighter. I have Skyfall with me of course. And so far, collecting them was a pain in the ass. 20 said to get them in _pristine_ condition, so that meant no ruptures or leaks. How the hell was I supposed to know that?!

"Primus, what do we need now?"

My Ghost popped out of my pack, clicking and whirring as he recalls what 20 needs for that machine. **"According to 20/20, he needs some Ether Sups, Wire Wraps and Induction Rods. Honestly, I don't know why he needs Induction─ oh. Turns out the Induction Rods are for a personal project. We need Ether Sups and Wire Wraps."**

"Knowing him, he probably needs those Induction Rods for Amanda."

 **"Seriously, that Fireteam 20's in is reckless beyond any of the ones I've seen. I mean, flying over an AA emplacement and having to pay 25000 Glimmer each for a new ship?"**

"I've seen worse, Primus. I mean, Fireteam Warden had damaged their ships beyond repair and they had to pay at least 75000 Glimmer. Last I heard of them, they all had broken bones and smashed-in noses because by the time they brought their ships back to the Tower, they had bullet holes all over it, smoke coming from the thrusters and demolished fins."

 **"Yikes. Remind us to never to anything stupid with our Sparrows and Ships."** I agreed with him, seeing as we're mostly careful with our transports…most of the time. Thank Rez for those times we didn't, not me or Silver.

I found myself in the Rocketyards, seeing Hive and Fallen go at each other's throats like they were the only two species on the planet trying to gain territory. And that's a thing. Ever since my Fireteam and I took down Crota, the Hive were trying to take Earth for him. How noble for a dead God. If Crota left a will to his armies to take the Earth after his death, it's time to give them a wakeup call. Earth belongs to us Guardians, not the Fallen, and not the Hive.

I need those Ether Sups and Wire Wraps, and the Fallen are my only source. Enemy of my enemy. Whipping out Immobius, I slammed the pump. I know it's typical for Titans to utilize shotguns as a last resort, but I really don't give a damn whether or not I use them all the time or as a last resort. Hell, you saw me using Burden of Proof XI during a stakeout.

I started running and as soon as the Hive and Fallen notice me, their faces were all blown off with a single blast. I kept that up until it ran out of ammo, to which I threw it down into the snow and whipped out Skyfall while dodging a Shock Blade and shot from a Hive Boomer at the same time. I crouched on a knee as soon as I hit the ground, watching as time around me came to a slowing halt. To me, they were all frozen in place, allowing me to aim at their heads and pull the trigger.

Time returned to normal, and all the Hive and Fallen in the area fell dead like they all suffered a simultaneous heart attack─or the Hive and Fallen equivalents of it. While the Hive disintegrated to dust, the Fallen reached for where their heads once were before and fell dead.

I picked up Immobius from the snow and slung it across my back, proceeding to collecting the Wire Wraps and Ether Sups from their corpses. While I was at it, I picked up any intact Induction Rods from the Vandals. As much as it's technically 20/20's Fireteam's fault for causing Amanda trouble, I figured I owe him for helping me with Silver. He's going out of his way to help a fellow Exo of his and working with some of the factions to find a way to deal with the goo. Hopefully, Silver can stay away from the stuff and let the others handle it. Bah, who am I kidding? _Of course_ he'll be involved one way or another.

Just as soon as I finished inspecting an Induction Rod, which was in pristine order, I put it in my pack. I heard the sound of a Fallen Vandal ready to attack with their Shock Blades. I turned around, shield from my left shoulder sliding down to my arm and enlarging to block it. I braced for the blade bouncing off my shield.

Instead, I heard a death rattle from the Vandal, plus the blade bouncing off the shield not happening. The shield shrunk back and returned to its normal place, and I turned to the direction of the sound. The Vandal was clawing at its neck, struggling to get whatever pinned it against the wall off. It failed to get it out, and it died there pinned to the wall.

"What the hell…?" I came closer to the Vandal's corpse, checking out what pinned it against the wall. I found it, and I yanked it out, freeing the Fallen with it. "Primus, is this what I think it is?"

 **"You're not wrong on that degree. Because it** _ **is**_ **what you think it is."**

The thing I pulled out of its neck was an arrow. With an Arc energy-powered, poisoned tip. The tip seemed out to be out of energy, so I put my hand over it like it was a candle. The electric feeling of Arc energy was still here, and it looks like it won't die out anytime soon. The Fallen corpse began to move, but I made sure it stayed down with a precision shot to the head.

"I thought you were always careful, Spectre." I turned around and found Reaper standing behind me, bow across her shoulders and arms crossed. "If I didn't know you were on item collecting missions, you'd already be struck from behind by a Shock Blade."

"It's nice to see you too, Reaper." I put Skyfall back into its holster and looked at the Huntress. "I take it this isn't a coincidence this time."

"It's not. What're you planning to do with all those Ether Sups and Wire Wraps?"

"Something I need to get back to 20/20." I clarified, Primus popping out of my pack and helping take the supplies off my hands.

"Oh yeah, I heard what happened to Silver. That's pretty traumatic."

"Hopefully, he learnt his lesson on not taking unknown substances we don't even remotely understand."

 **"If you ask me, that's how all Warlocks are. I mean, look at Toland. His studies got him into knee-deep trouble and never made it out alive."** I heard a Ghost's voice speak, and I knew that wasn't Primus's. What I assumed to be Reaper's Ghost appeared over her shoulder, a Frontier Shell as its frame.

 **"So, this is her Ghost. Pretty sure I heard something different."**

 **"You're not wrong about it,"** her Ghost deadpanned, and it was now that Primus and I are dumbstruck. **"I'm Rex, Reaper's Ghost."**

"Well, that's the first I've heard of it. I thought all Ghosts had a male voice."

 **"You wanna say that again, Titan?"** growled Rex, her shell angrily splitting apart and whirring as it hovered towards my helmet. **"Just because most of the Ghosts you see have a male voice doesn't mean there aren't female ones!"** As if I was intimidated by a Ghost. I pushed her away from my face.

"Calm down… Little Light." Reaper sighed, and her Ghost turned to her.

 **"Don't. Do. That!"** If Rex had something going on, I'd already see smoke pouring out of her shell like crazy. Heh, I remember when I said the same thing to Primus. Although he just went with it, but I'd imagine Rex has a short temper.

"So why are you here, Reaper?" I brought the two out of their one-sided bickering and had Reaper look at me.

"I'm here doing bounties for the Cryptarchs and Xander. Other than that, I'm bored of sticking around in the Tower waiting for the next crisis to happen."

"Isn't that everyone? I'm out here because Rez is being an ass and I need to help 20/20 with the machine that can get Silver back to the front lines."

"Welcome to being a lone wolf."

"…For the day." I finished, missing─and loathing─the days I went out solo. But right now, I have to deal with it since it's the way things are right now. "And I suppose you don't need anyone covering your six, am I right?"

 **"Spectre, you wouldn't even dare think of it!"** Primus teased me, nudging my armored shoulder.

"Quiet, you." I growled, turning my head to his direction but my eyes were still on the Hunter.

"I know you're curious about me, Spectre." As soon as I heard her say that, I was shocked. How did she?! "I know how skeptical you are with Guardians with titles they claim to be, and I'd know you're skeptical about mine."

"You caught me in the act," I shrug in a surrendering style, "Well then, why don't you prove it? If you really can hunt the Fallen without being seen?"

The next thing I know, Reaper's gone and already advancing on a group of Vandals, Hunter's knife at the ready and bow slung across her shoulders. She stands behind one of them and stabs them in the neck then snaps it to the side. She then threw her knife and decapitated another Vandal, yet they didn't see it and draws out a spare along with her handcannon Starfall. Soon enough, she grapples a third and has it at knife point and Starfall behind its head. While I watched, I crossed my arms. I have a feeling she'll screw up somewhere.

But she didn't.

She slit the Vandal's throat and aimed Starfall at the last one, pulling the trigger and throwing the knife. Both the bullet and knife struck their target, an explosion of mist from the Fallen's respirator for a few seconds before its corpse fell to the ground.

If I wasn't wearing my helmet, she'd see my jaw hanging. And if Primus was human, he'd act the same way. "…Damn. Remind me to never judge anyone before seeing their capabilities in combat."

 **"Agreed, Spectre."**

"Will that suffice for my title?" she Blinked in front of me, handcannon holstered and tossing one of her knives like Petra with a hand on her hip. "Because if it won't, I'll show you what it's like to fight me in a Grudge Match."

 **"She's making a move on you! She's making a move on you!"** I heard Primus whisper into my helmet's audio receptor, not sure if it was a warning or a joking tone. **"What are you waiting for?! Say something!"**

"Do me a favor and go back where you belong _right now_!" Primus inched away from me and vanished back into his spot, followed by me face palming at him trying to get me a girlfriend. Since when do Ghosts know anything about love?

Knowing us, I have a feeling that our meetings will be more frequent, but unexpected like the Exo Stranger.

"I might do just that." Wait, what the hell did I just say!?

"Great." She begins to walk away from the center of the Rocketyards, but stops after a few steps and turns around. She tosses me something and I caught it. "I'll contact you when I want to have the match. Until then, ciao!" She left─correction, _vanished_ ─from the area, leaving me and Primus alone. I look down on what she threw at me. They were Induction Rods. And in perfect condition despite how she took them down. Guess I owe her.

 **"Wow, shooting down every opportunity you have to get a girl. Real professional of you, Spectre."**

"Primus, just shut up." I walked away from the Rocketyards, Primus over my shoulder like normal and irritating the hell out of me on this topic. One I've went over _again and again_ that I don't want to talk about. "Since when were you so fixated on getting me hooked up with someone?"

 **"Face it, Spectre: you've been a lone wolf before and you're kind of still are now. You'd think that by getting all that fame, you'd get a girlfriend."**

"I don't have time for it. Plus she might be another female Guardian who wants me to be their boyfriend and brag about it. I don't roll that way."

 **"So you're considering it."** Seriously, this is getting annoying really quick. Under my helmet, I'm practically grinding my teeth.

"Primus, just shut up. Right. Now."

 **"Don't lie to me, Spectre."**

"Primus."

 **"Why you always lying?"**

"Little Light."

 **"…Fine, I'll shut up right now."**

 ** _-Destiny-_**

After I got back to the Tower from the Cosmodrome, which was crowded with Guardians new and old as usual, I decided to find 20/20 in his usual spot at his workshop─a glorified workspace he set up in the hangar. And what do I find? Him working on machines and tinkering with calculations on how to counteract the parasitic membrane. He was too deep in his work that he just shuts out what's outside his workshop boundaries.

"20." I called, standing right before the table he's working his machines on. No response. "20." I said louder, but he's still working on the calculations and alternating to the machines. Okay, remember when I had the 'three strikes' thing going on? The 'No response once, you're playing a prank on me. No response twice, you're starting to piss me off. No response three times, that's it, time's up. Nope. No more chances.' thing? Yep, he's done it this time.

"20!" I slammed a fist on the table the same time I called out his name, snapping him out of his focused trance. Yeah, I think that worked.

"Can't you see I'm─!" As soon as he removes his goggles, he stopped himself before yelling in my face. "Oh. It's you."

"I got the supplies you need for Silver." I had Primus lay out the Wire Wraps and Ether Sups in front of him. "Oh, and I got you some Induction Rods for your 'personal project'." I laid out the rods next to the Wire Wraps carefully like they were miniature nuclear bombs, and 20/20 just takes the materials carefully.

"Thanks a lot for the help, Spectre. I know I could've had the other members of my Fireteam do the work, but they're being pricks at the moment thanks to Amanda."

"Anything on how to counteract the membrane?"

He laid back on the chair, artificial optics focused on me as he looked at his screen and folding his arms. "I'll be honest with you here, this stuff is something I've never seen before. However, I might be on to something, thanks to help from Silver."

Why am I not surprised that he helped out 20/20?

"Go on."

"Whatever this stuff is, making sure it doesn't get on you requires a lot more resilient materials for armor. Plasteel, Sapphire Wire, Relic Iron, Spinmetal and Hadronic Essence won't cut it this time around. Once that stuff touches any of those materials, they'll start eating away at it."

"Just what I needed: an armor-eating, parasitic membrane that can turn its victims into Taken."

"Well, the membrane doesn't technically eat away the armor: it just passes through without any difficulty much like acid." 20 clarified. "However, I'm working with some of the Warlocks and Hunters to see if we can make '2.0' materials that won't be affected by the goo."

"Great. Keep me updated."

"By the way, Cayde's looking for you." 20 called out as I left the workshop, and I waved in acknowledgement. What does Cayde need me for this time? As soon as I got out of the hangar, I made my way to the Hall of Guardians, seeing Cayde, Ikora, and Zavala at their normal routine. Thankfully this time, I modified my new Duskrender to be a part of my chestplate. As soon as I stepped in, my helmet began to open and retreat to my neck armor, freeing my head from the helmet while I'm here.

I walked over to Cayde's side of the table, and immediately he notices me. "There's the Guardian I'm looking for!"

"This better be important, Cayde. Honestly, I don't have time to fool around."

"Yeesh, uptight like Zavala," the Hunter Vanguard made an Exo's equivalent of someone clicking their tongue. Why do I get the feeling that this is another one of his 'bad ideas that work'? "Look, only way to stop the Taken is to get you and your team on that Dreadnaught…as soon as Rez gets back on his feet and Silver has his combat coding restored. I've got a plan, but we'll need some specialized kinda gear."

Noting that Ikora and Zavala could be listening in, I lowered my voice. "What exactly are we looking at?"

"Lucky for you and me, I spent years prepping for…special circumstances. We need a stealth drive. I got one hidden in the─"

"Cayde? What are you whispering?" Dammit, Ikora's onto us! The Warlock Vanguard looked at the two of us, the Warlocks' signature curious glint in their eyes.

Cayde started chuckling like nothing was wrong. "Nothing! Nothing…!" he turned to me, whispering in a low voice quiet enough for Ikora to not listen into and also loud enough for me to hear. "I'll contact you in the Cosmodrome."

Oh great. Back to the Cosmodrome?

This is gonna be one of those days, isn't it?

* * *

 **Okay, we're done with chapter IV! So yeah, if you guys are curious and want to find out what the whole thing I'm working on is all about, just leave a review if you want me to post parts of it here on the site!**

 **Now, I know some of you are wondering what Skyfall looks like in this story. Well, here it is:**

 **-Has the frame of Hawkmoon (with straighter rear sights and no feather engravings)**

 **-Grip of The First Curse/Last Word**

 **-Magazine of The Last Word**

 **-Sights of Thorn (the holographic part, not the entire thing and colored red)**

 **-Is black like most pistols in real life, but has navy blue engravings in a pattern similar to the ones seen in** _ **Tron**_ **(Anyone seen the 2010** _ **Tron Legacy**_ **? Yeah, that kind of pattern) and the Sparrow you receive as a reward from the Refer-A-Friend quest.**

 **-The emblem imprinted next to the chamber is the same one as the wolf from the Wolfsgrin emblem you can get in-game.**

 **Starfall's is basically the same thing, but with a silver finish, red-colored engravings, and the emblem from the Sheltered Truth emblem in-game. Unlike Skyfall, Starfall parallels the Last Word while Skyfall draws parallels with the First Curse.**

 **If any of you want to draw it out, make sure to credit me as the original creator! Or else!**

 **Now, Skyfall's perks!**

 **Column 0: Roulette (Description: After reloading when the magazine is empty and spinning the cylinder, you'll have a 1 out of 18 chance that the bullet will be the same one from the moment you chambered it. If it is the same bullet, it will earn a 6x damage multiplier with overpenetration when the round is fired.), Inhibitor (Description: If used in the Crucible, impact will decrease by 25% and reload will be increased by 25% as a tradeoff.)**

 **Column 1: Field Choke, Accurized Ballistics, Smooth Ballistics**

 **Column 2: Mutiny, Sword of Aegeus, Hannibal, Malleus Maleficarum, Disciplinarian, Slayer of the Darkness (Description: Deals bonus damage to all minions of the Darkness)**

 **Column 3: Speed Reload, Snapshot, Armor-Piercing Rounds, Dark Tracker Rounds (Description: enemies of the Darkness hit by these bullets will be marked on HUD and Tracker.)**

 **Column 4: Skyfall (Description: Precision kills while aiming down the sights or from the hip grants increased stability (regardless of enemy's level) and impact to higher-level minions of the Darkness (applies to enemies above your level, like 41 and 42).)**

 **Stats (Stats are based on both the average of Legendary and Exotic Year 2 Handcannons and Pulse Rifles (Skyfall has the range of a Pulse Rifle) on the Destiny armory, excluding impact):**

 **Rate of Fire: 24**

 **Impact: 100**

 **Range: 39**

 **Stability: 39**

 **Reload: 27**

 **Magazine: 18**

 **If this was an actual Exotic weapon, then it would be considered too OP. Luckily, I oriented Skyfall towards PvE (hence the bonus damage perks to Hive, Fallen, Vex and Cabal), because if people used this in Crucible, then it's more or less like the First Curse, only more stronger. Do you agree with me or do you see other uses if Skyfall was an actual Exotic weapon in** _ **Destiny**_ **? Let me know!**


	5. I-V: Cayde's Stash

**Before this chapter starts, I'd like to tell you that when I'll be remaking the missions from** _ **The Taken King**_ **, it will be written in third person…with a few chapters having exceptions.**

 **Also, I'd like to give kudos to The Crimson Commando for not only making Fireteam Nero Bianco's first cameo appearance in** _ **Dragons' Destiny**_ **, but for also writing (and thankfully cutting to the chase) of how Spectre and his Fireteam witnessed the start of the Taken War on Phobos. I know I'm repeating myself from my review, but I look forward to working with you.**

 _ **Chapter V: Cayde's Stash**_

* * *

How?

How did it turn out to be like this?!

One minute, she was hunting down the Fallen for the cryptarchs, now the Taken are here?! Why!?

Reaper, with Night Predator at the ready, ran for cover in the Divide and Shadestepped to it, back against it as she loaded an arrow. So far, she evaded the Taken Vandal's Wire Rifles and fired her bow from behind cover, taking out a few of them in rapid precision with some Arc energy-tipped arrows and ones made directly from the Arc…but some of the arrows bounced off by some of their 'Ward of Dawn' shields, which were erected as soon as the arrows were feet away from striking some of the Vandals. She kept her head down when the Fallen were thrown into the mix, who caught sight of the Huntress and started to focus on her as well as the Taken.

 _How did they…!_ She noticed that one of the Taken Vandals had their sights on her, and she ducked. However, when she ducked, the Vandal had already fired and her Celestial Nighthawk was knocked off her head, exposing her head. The golden helmet rolled in the snow, far from Reaper's reach until it met its demise at the side of the cliff, where it plunged into the icy waters of the Russian Cosmodrome. As much as she wants to fight back, she knew how many Guardians fell when they had no helmet on. Knowing the Fallen, they would have some Vandals with Wire Rifles at the ready, aimed right at her head as soon as she pops her head out of cover.

"Rex, get me another helmet!"

 **"I can't! Our transmat has been blocked!"** her Ghost frantically cried, trying to gain access to her Guardian's inventory and vault to no avail, no doubt due to the Taken presence. **"I sent out a distress signal to help us out, hopefully─"**

The sound of a hammer slamming against an anvil rang out in the area, to which she saw a glimpse of a Hammer of Sol sailing towards the Taken and Fallen, melting and incinerating all who met its fiery wrath, whether it be from the explosion radius when it lands or if it slams into its victim's face. A symphony of explosions followed as the Solar ability struck its victims, chaining from one victim to another until a fiery inferno was all that's left in the crossfire.

"What the…?" She peeked out her cover, seeing only ashes of the Fallen falling like snow and pillars of Solar flames shrouding the area.

"And here I thought _you_ were the careful one between the both of us. Turns out you need someone to watch your six from time to time."

She turned around. Standing behind her was none other than Spectre. He had a hand out for her to help her up. Her face tinted red as she took it, getting back up on her feet and dusted herself.

"Wait, didn't you go back to the Tower? I saw your ship leave."

"I did, but Cayde sent me back here to get something for him," he explained, clarifying the Huntress on why he returned. "By the way, you're no Hunter without one of these."

"How did you─!" In Spectre's hand was a Celestial Nighthawk, the hawk design staring back at her.

"I called in a favor. It's not the one you lost, but I hope this replacement can suffice. Plus, who'd want to use a soaked Celestial Nighthawk that's been sitting in the icy Russian waters for at least ten seconds?"

 **"By 'favor', you mean 'hacking into the Hunters' Exotic Armor Blueprint kiosk back in the Tower and using one of your plentiful Exotic Shards and 2500 Glimmer to reproduce a Celestial Nighthawk for an unfortunate Huntress who lost hers'."** Primus joked, chuckling until his partner turned his head and started growling frustratingly. **"…Just can't seem to take a joke, can you Spectre?"**

"Not with you pulling the jokes. _Especially_ with the ones concerning a female Guardian."

"T-thanks." Reaper took the replacement of her lost helmet and put it on, allowing her the protection she needs when she will fight any snipers.

 _"Spectre, you at the Cosmodrome?"_ Cayde called through Spectre's Duskrender, to which the Titan gestured Reaper to allow him to take the contact. She nodded, and Spectre turned around with two fingers pressed against the side of an audio receptor.

"Of course I'm at the Cosmodrome, Cayde."

 _"Oh, you got your lady friend with you. Good. She'll tell you where I hid the stealth drive."_

"Cayde, don't you dare think about just leaving me here without any directions to─"

 _"Relax, every Hunter knows where I keep my stash. Told 'em myself. Plus, can't let Ikora in on our little operation. Bye."_ With that, Cayde signed off, leaving a pissed off Spectre to the mission.

"Goddamn slippery bastard!" he yelled angrily, punching a nearby concrete structure and melting part of it off, the rest turning into rubble. "'Can't let Ikora in on our little operation', my ass."

While the Titan was cooling off from his short temper tantrum, Reaper walked next to Primus and whispered, "What's going on?"

 **"Oh, Cayde just left him directionless on a mission. Said something about all the Hunters knowing where he keeps his stash and whatnot…"**

Reaper began to laugh uncontrollably, catching the attention of the Sunbreaker sent by Cayde. "Seriously? Well, I _suppose_ that's why Cayde tells all the Hunters about where he keeps his stash and not the Titans and Warlocks."

"Where? Where does he keep it?"

Instead of telling him straight up, she points up towards the derelict shuttle launch towers. "Right up there."

Spectre trudged towards the launch towers, but the Huntress stopped him dead in his tracks, standing before him and blocking his path. He tried to move forward by walking around her, but was stopped again. "What do you think you're doing? I have a mission to fulfill."

"Only way you're getting up there is with a Hunter. Me."

"Tch, how hard can it be to get up there?"

" _Very_ difficult," she, with Rex hovering over her shoulder, looked at the Titan and his Ghost, "especially with the entrance to get up there."

"Where do we start?"

"The House of Devils' Lair, in the Blast. Beyond that point is the entrance to the dome, and Cayde's stash." She signaled him to follow her before having Rex summon her S-34 Ravensteel and mounting it. Spectre had Primus repeat the same thing and transmat his Ravensteel.

 _ **-Destiny-**_

As soon as the Huntress and Titan approached the Blast, they were met with a gruesome sight.

Taken.

And Fallen.

Both species at war with the other, with the House of Devils fighting to defend their home from the new threat.

Both Guardians mounted off their Sparrows and armed themselves with their relatively new handcannons with their swords and respective special weapons, followed by Primus coming out of his hiding spot and contacting Cayde.

 **"Cayde…we got a real problem down here."**

 _"Let me guess: four arms, wear cloaks…smell real bad?"_ the Hunter Vanguard took a shot in the dark, cracking a joke as well.

 **"Not Fallen─Taken!"**

Cayde cursed under his breath. _"…thought we'd have more time…"_

"Well, what do you think: fight them, or make a run for it?" asked the human Huntress, noting how outmanned─and outgunned─both Guardians were against the Fallen and Taken.

"Seeing as how many heavy hitters are out there, and the fact that my Super's not charged to deal with them yet, I'd say make a run for it."

"Lucky for us, I know how to slip by them…" just as Spectre was about to ask how, Reaper threw down a smoke grenade, enveloping the both of them in smoke and making them appear invisible. The two darted across the conflict, avoiding the number of shots from both sides and slipping by the number of Fallen and Taken outside and past the gate that led to the lair of the House of Devils. Spectre hit the button and the gate slammed back down, preventing any of the enemies to enter. The invisibility effect from Reaper's smoke grenade wore off, allowing the two to be seen again.

"Great, more of this stuff," Spectre grumbled, seeing the area infested with the Taken parasitic membrane as well as the Taken blights. The Huntress knelt down to examine the stuff, but Spectre pulled her away from it. "Don't. Unless you want to end up like Silver, then don't touch it. So watch your step, or where you're putting your hand."

"Noted."

 _"How bad is it?"_ Cayde communicated to both Guardians' comms, prompting them to press their fingers to their helmets' audio receptors.

" **Taken everywhere. Fighting the Fallen."**

 _"Earth's gonna look a lot like Phobos if you two don't find that stealth drive."_ Cayde warned the two, sending the chills of the thought down their spines. _"Reaper, since you're here, why don't you crack open the door for our Titan buddy?"_

"Got it, Cayde."

They pressed on to the lair, where the Taken began to appear. Both Guardians opened fire on their weapons, blasting the Psions and Vandals to oblivion and some that got too close with their own fists and knives. More of them began to appear, and they continued to shoot and melee the hell out of them. As quick as the Taken invasion had been, the threat inside the House of Devils' Lair had been vanquished within a magazine's worth of handcannon, shotgun, and bow ammo as well as some fists and knives.

As soon as Spectre rolled his arm after swinging punches wildly, his comms went live. _"Spectre, it's 20. You there?"_

The leader of the Ancient Vanguard responded, "Yeah, I'm here. What's going on?"

 _"Listen, you remember what we were talking about in my workshop? About some '2.0' materials?"_

"About damn time you got some!"

 _"Well…not really. We were able to create some prototype armor and we need some field testing to see if it works."_

Spectre looked over at the Huntress, who was fiddling around with one of her knives while he was taking a call. "20… See if you can spare another set, this time for a Huntress."

 _"Got it. Transmat ETA for second set will be in two to three minutes. I'm sending over the field test to you now."_

The field test armor transmatted in front of his feet. He knelt down and picked it up, equipping the more resilient plates over his current armor and allowing the 1.0 and prototype '2.0' materials to merge. Spectre cracked his neck, adjusting to the new weight added to his current armor and testing the plates around his knuckles by punching his palm with his good hand. _Huh, not bad at all. Feels like I punched an iron wall instead of my fists._ He flexed his fingers and turned them into fists, checking to see if the joint articulation synced perfectly. _Articulation's good. Durability's great, now for the real test…_

He walked over to a puddle of the Taken membrane, dipping his fingers in it. The pale-blue membrane jumped on his hand, spreading to envelope it entirely and maybe to compromise the armor and convert a warrior of the Light to Oryx's side. Not a good thing. Just as soon as the goo breached his armor, it was met with energy plates covering Spectre's weak points in his armor, the blue light pulsing like the No Backup Plans gauntlets. As swift as the energy came, the parasite leapt off his armor, 'howling' painfully as it vanished back to the realm it came from.

 _"Sorry if it doesn't live up to your expectations. Silver came up with the idea of having the armor being something like a Defender's Disintegrate shield. The plates are the generators and respond to any breaches in the armor."_

"Figured as much. Is the field test done?"

 _"You did one half of the test. The other half deals with some Taken. We're getting reports of some Taken Majors being able to use the parasitic membrane as projectiles."_

"Got it. Is the other set here?"

 _"Check your feet."_ Spectre looked down, and there was an armor set for a Hunter. _"Don't thank me. Thank Silver and the others for it."_

"Humble as ever," the Titan muttered as 20/20 signed off the comms channel before proceeding to pick up the armor set. Reaper sat on the edge of the platform, swinging her legs back and forth and looking up at the sky until Spectre set the armor set down next to her. "Sorry if that took a while. Here, you're gonna need this."

The Huntress got back on her feet and started to add the armor to her own, adjusting to the weight added to her armor-to-cloth ratio. "Don't worry about making me wait. Knowing how much you and your Fireteam works to help us in the frontier and the front lines, I'd understand."

"How's the armor?"

"Little heavy, but I'll manage." With the both of them equipped, they walked down the stairs, only to notice a giant orb sitting in the side destroyed. Primus, out of curiousity, popped out of his pack and began to scan the ball. It was a Prime Servitor.

 **"You guys remember when Sepiks Prime was our biggest problem?"**

"Thank the Traveler it's over."

"Damn Servitors." Spectre cursed, remembering how bad the fights with Sepiks Prime and other Servitors like it were. The huge Void blasts, the amount of damage they soaked up─especially with Kaliks Reborn, goddamn piece of Fallen shit─, it brought up just the bitterness as Reaper leapt across the ruined bridge in the back of the room, calling out to the Titan to follow her. Spectre broke into a run and Lifted off the ledge, gliding over to where the Huntress was and walking off the landing.

"Well, that's new."

"Wait, it's supposed to be closed!" Reaper gasped, seeing the entrance to where Cayde kept his stash opened. Even if there was a trick to get through it, somebody got through!

 **"Cayde, the door's already open; we're inside."**

 _"And the Flux grenades didn't detonate?"_

"They're all gone." Reaper answered, and the two Guardians heard the Exo Vanguard groan.

 _"I gotta get out of this tower."_

Spectre and Reaper continued on to the area, with the Titan following the Huntress all the way to an abandoned elevator shaft leading to the Devil's Spire. The Taken blight in the area let out a flash of light, blinding both Guardians as Taken Thrall appeared around the two, surrounding them as soon as the flash stopped. The twisted Thrall twitched uncontrollably, ready to take more to their king.

Both Guardians stood back to back in the middle, looking around their environment and conditions. No way to jump up and out of the ring. "Now what?"

"Just kill them and clear a path." Having no choice, Spectre pulled out Raze-Lighter from his back, the blade materializing and engulfing itself in Solar flames as his shield came back to his arm. Under her helmet, Reaper smiled and brought out her own Raze-Lighter and the two began swinging the flame-engulfed swords wildly, slaughtering the Taken Thrall by the swing.

After the threat in the area has been cleared out, both of them put away their swords and made their way to the elevator, where a shutter closed the two of them as soon as Spectre got in.

 **"What are the chances the elevator still works?"** as though to answer the Ghost's question, the elevator activated, the metal moaning after what has to be a long time since its last use. **"We're headed up. Cayde? When's the last time you rode this elevator?"**

 _"Relax, it works fine! …But…stand by for resurrection, Primus."_ Cayde reassured the Ghost, but somehow, that second part didn't seem to convince him.

As the elevator was slowly getting up to the top, Primus and Rex began to analyze the energy readings in the Cosmodrome. Reaper was checking out her knife, making sure it's in top form. However, her eyes glanced over at the Titan, who was staring out into the wilderness of the Cosmodrome, a hand out as though he was looking at something in it before it was engulfed in Solar fire.

"Hey, you okay?" Reaper caught the leader of the Ancient Vanguard's attention, and the Solar-engulfed hand was extinguished.

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Just spacing out."

" _That_ , coming from the protégé of Commander Zavala? That's new."

Spectre shrugged. "A leader has their moments." They reached the top of the spire, and the both of them got off the elevator…which collapsed and fell back to the bottom. "Well, there goes our lift."

 **"How do we find your stealth drive?"**

 _"There's a bridge from the tower to the ship. It took me days to get it working; it's a little unstable, so watch your step."_

Spectre found the controls for the bridge nearby. Unfortunate for him. That, and that the bridge has been locked into place in another position. Reaper, after inspecting the controls, looked upwards to see something to reroute the power.

 **"Cayde, someone moved the bridge, destroyed the controls."**

 _"Yeah, that's the Fallen─probably trying to keep the Taken off their backs. See if you can reroute the power,"_ the Exo Vanguard took another crack at guessing what happened, sparking flying in Spectre's view. _"Once you get the bridge working, my stash is in the ball on the top of the colony ship."_

 _"We're still waiting for details on this plan of yours, Cayde."_

 _Shit, we've been compromised._ Spectre mentally face palmed at hearing the Warlock Vanguard's voice. As much as he wanted to pin the blame on Cayde, it was probably the Warlocks' goddamned knack for being curious that got them under the microscope.

Just as soon as comms ended, the Bladedancer came landing down next to the Sunbreaker. "No need to worry about rerouting the power."

"Why's that?" The bridge began to creak and moan, waking up from its slumber. It began to move to the right, connecting the gap between the towers from the one the Guardians were on to the one with Cayde's stash.

"Did it while you were talking to Cayde."

"Just how much of a lone wolf are you?"

"More than all the lone wolf Titans I know." As Spectre just got burned, the middle of the bridge began to fall apart as soon as the end connecting the bridge to the other tower met. It fell apart, the bridge now in half as though a giant just ripped it in half.

"And I assume this is where things get difficult for us Titans and Warlocks?" he turned to face the Huntress, but she wasn't there. In her place was a note, which he picked up. _Meet you at the other side._

"Goddammit."

 _ **-Destiny-**_

Reaper sat on a steel beam next to a Fallen grav-lift, legs swinging over the edge and humming a tune as she waited for a certain Sunbreaker. Her replaced Celestial Nighthawk sat next to her, the golden scheme glistening in the afternoon sun.

 **"How long do you think it'll take for him to be here?"** her Ghost hovered over her shoulder as normal, alternating between looking at the sun and at her partner.

"If I had to make a guess, I'd say right about…" she caught the sound of Titan boots clanging against the metal that made up the tower as well as an argument between two people. "Now."

 **"How was I supposed to know that the Phalanx would launch you that far?! Even more, be able to block your fusion grenade that quick?!"**

"Are you kidding me?! Primus, you're a _Ghost_! Your job was to resurrect me when I'm down and help me out with the Golden Age doors; not goddamn laughing at me when I was knocked off the platform!"

 **"Admit it, it was funny considering you died from a combination of a fusion grenade and that Phalanx's shield blast."** (A/N: This actually happened to me when I was playing Cayde's Stash once. I died from both my Fusion Grenade which was on that Taken Phalanx's shield at the hatch and the shield blast. *Insert 'fus ro dah!' or any other joke that involves someone or something being launched here*)

"Yeah? How about I put _you_ in that situation instead of me!?" Spectre stopped mid-rant to look at the Huntress and her Ghost staring at the two of them, a hint of amusement in their look.

Reaper got up from the beam and put her Celestial Nighthawk back on, facing the Titan and his Ghost. "Are you two done arguing?"

 **"It's pretty amusing to see something like this, I'll admit."** Rex chuckled.

"…One minute." Spectre turned to face Primus and wrapped one of his hands around Primus' shell.

 **"Hey, what are you─ yeow ow ow!"** smoke began to fume from Spectre's Ghost shell-holding hand, followed by a mild flame of Solar energy encasing it. **"Okay, okay! I'll do my job next time!"**

Spectre let go of his Ghost and extinguished the Solar energy from his fist. "Don't do your job one more time, and it'll be more than just having a burn mark on your shell. Maybe I'll even melt off one part of your shell!"

 **"Lesson learnt, Spectre."** With that settled, Primus returned to his place in Spectre's pack on his mark, never to bug him while he's still pissed off.

"Are you done?" asked Reaper, and the Sunbreaker nodded. "Why in the name of the Traveler would you do such a thing to a Ghost?"

"As much as he gets on my nerves─aside from Rez─, it's him either bugging me about a topic I don't enjoy or just being annoying and pushing my buttons," clarified Spectre, looking out into the afternoon sky just like the Bladedancer next to him. "Grav-lift the only thing left until we enter the dome?"

"Yep. Just get on it and we're inside the ball." The two got on the Fallen machine and they were taken straight into the ball where Cayde kept his stash… Only for there to be a group of Fallen already there. The Huntress and Titan whipped out their respective custom handcannons and started shooting at the Vandals and Dreg. Just as soon as Spectre was about to punch a Dreg with his Sunstrike, a violent shockwave erupted in the area, wiping out the Fallen and sending the two Guardians into the walls. Reaper was able to survive the impact without much of a problem. The Titan, on the other hand and despite being in heavy armor, was thrown into it so hard that a crater formed as soon as he hit it.

"Agh, dammit…" Spectre groaned, definitely feeling the shockwave as his helmet began to blare out red like crazy. "Reaper!"

"I'm okay! Look!" the center of the room began to warp with a dark aura, with the aura transfiguring into a Hive-like creature with wings. "That has to be Oryx!"

"WHAT CROTA BEGAN, I COMPLETE! VENGEANCE FOR CROTA!" the shadow raised his hand towards the Huntress, the signature aura produced by Wizards' Darkness Blasts beginning to ignite.

"Get out of there!"

Reaper ducked for cover just as soon as the Echo of Oryx started firing its Darkness Blast, Shadestepping at the last second when the blasts were mere inches away from hitting her. Holstering Starfall, she drew out Night Predator and nocked in three Solar tipped arrows into the Sapphire Wire-made bowstring, pulling them back and aiming at the Echo's face. She let go, letting the arrows fly and strike the Echo in the face. The Echo howled painfully and lashed out at the Huntress by firing more Darkness Blasts, this time more overwhelming than before. Again, the Huntress ducked with her Shadestep, but not unscathed like the last time. Some of the blasts caught her mid-Shadestep, draining some of her health. Her prototype Anti-Taken armor had helped repel the Taken parasite off her armor, and thankfully it didn't malfunction.

Spectre, after freeing himself from his spot from the wall, collapsed to the floor, his regenerative abilities not even kicking in. He looked up painfully as the Echo continued to shoot Darkness Blasts at his Huntress partner with apparently no defining limit. _Dammit, what the hell can I do? My health's not regenerating, my field test armor's probably busted from the impact, and I can't get back on my feet without getting on a knee…_ He punched the ground defeatingly, melting off part of the metal. _There's only one thing I can do…_ Painfully, he got back up with a bit of a struggle and watched as Taken blights took the stage before him and sent off many Taken Psions.

"Bring it!" he called out and summoned his Hammer of Sol, jumping upwards and slamming it against the metal. A wave of devastating Solar energy similar to a Striker's Shockwave ability erupted from the hammer and the ground colliding, tracking its unfortunate victims and incinerating them to ashes. Just as the Taken Blights showed up, the Sunbreaker charged towards them and swung it, causing them to all explode in fiery Solar energy and never allowing the Taken to come to the battleground.

"Hey Oryx!" the Echo turned around, stopping his onslaught of Darkness Blasts and allowing Reaper some breathing space. "You looking for me!? Huh?! Because I was the one who killed your son?!" just before his Super energy ran out, he transferred the Solar energy from his Raze-Lighter into his Sunbreaker subclass, practically giving it the effects of Boundless Light and ensuring that his Super remains charged until he finishes off the clone. "Well, send your armies of Hive and Taken after me and my team! Once I'm done with your doppelgänger and armies, _I'm making sure you join Crota in the grave!_ "

He started to throw more Hammers of Sol at the Echo, enveloping the shadow of the Taken King in flames and allowing Reaper to heal up and nock an arrow into her bow. She pulled it back, aiming at the Echo and channeled the energies of the Void into the arrow before letting it go. The arrow struck the Echo from behind, preventing it from warping away to safety.

"Now, Spectre!"

"No need to tell me twice!"

The Titan broke into a running start and leapt up to match the height of the Echo of Oryx. Just as he was eye to eye with the doppelgänger, he left hooked the Echo, leaving a Solar mark on one of its jaws, then raised his hands over his head in a Fist of Havoc-like motion and slamming the shadow down to the ground with his fists. The Echo crashed into the floor, and Spectre stomped down on its spine, making sure it doesn't get back up. As much as the Echo tried to free itself from the Sunbreaker and the Shadowshot, it howled painfully as the Titan on its back began to claw at where his wings and his back met until Spectre ripped them off like they were just props on a costume. The shadow tried to escape by shaking Spectre off of it, but Reaper shot down another Shadowshot arrow and tethering it down further.

"Come anywhere near the City or me and my Fireteam, and this is what will happen to your armies and your damned doppelgängers you send after us!" his good fist began to infuse itself with Solar, Arc, and Void energy as he pried open the Echo's jaws forcibly with his other hand.

The Echo watched frozen and horribly as Spectre threw his fist down its mouth, the burning, electric, and disintegrating feeling of the three elements starting to do their job with their respective feeling when struck. The shadow of the Taken King began to disintegrate from the inside out, howling while the Titan's fist was still in its jaws followed by an eruption of flames. However, as there were Solar fire, there was also black fire erupting from the Echo. After what seemed to be an eternity of agony and suffering, the Echo ceased its howls of agony and was violently pulled in from a pocket black hole to whence it came, removing the blight of the Taken from the area…for now.

Just as the threat was dealt with, Spectre stood back up, breathing heavily as he removed his Duskrender and let it fall next to him before he fell to his knees. The aura produced by Sunbreakers when activating their Supers faded away, heaving him back to his black-colored armor. Out of the reflection on his helmet's visor, he saw a horrifying sight.

 _Dammit, no!_ No _!_ His steel-blue eyes wasn't blue.

It turned to a sinister gold. And there was blood on his face.

 _No, no, no,_ NO _! Why?!_ He shook his head, hoping it was just another hallucination. Spectre looked back at his helmet's visor. The gold eyes and blood had faded away, and the blue came back.

 **"That thing seemed pretty mad. Oryx must still be holding a grudge against us. You know…killing Crota?"** Primus popped out of his hiding spot, looking at his partner while he was still trying to assess why his eyes turned gold instead of blue. **"Here, you might need this."** The Duskrender helmet hovered right before Spectre's face, and the Sunbreaker took it, slapping it back on and hiding his face again under the guise of the Duskrender.

"Spectre?" said Titan turned around as soon as he got back on his feet and at the Huntress who helped him on the way up here with a Stealth Drive in hand. "Here. I was able to acquire it while you were dealing with that…thing."

"…Thank you." Primus stored the Stealth Drive in the Titan's inventory for him as Reaper's Ghost materialized next to her. The Huntress took off her helmet and pulled her hood down, letting her long brunette hair tumble down and her gray eyes out of the visor.

 **"You're not hurt, are you? That was a pretty bad slam, if you ask me."**

"Primus, you know better that I've endured slams to the wall far worse than that," he rolled his arm that had the infused elements used to slay the Echo, feeling numb from all that trouble. "Thanks for the help, Reaper."

"It's not a bother, Spectre. Because like you and The Ancient Vanguard, I want to help out my fellow Guardians, even though I'm a lone wolf a lot of the time," she stared at the ground, facing away from Spectre's gaze. "Hey, um, if you don't mind me asking, but do you─"

"Want to go on a date?" Spectre finished, and that caused the Huntress to look at him. "Didn't you ask me for a Grudge Match earlier?"

"Um, it's fine if you don't want to! I understand completely!"

"Hold on, let me finish." Reaper stopped acting flustered at her sudden boldness and Spectre sighed, admitting defeat against his own Ghost. "As much as I know, every human female Guardian has asked me the same thing. But I always knew that they only wanted to use me as a thing to brag about. And honestly, that's not how I roll. Don't take it the wrong way, but how can I be sure that you're not going to just use me?"

Her face started burning crimson red, and she turned around to avoid Spectre's helmeted gaze. "That's not my intention! I just want to know you better. Better than everyone in the Tower knows about you. That's what I meant by going out on a date."

"…Very well," the Huntress looked up and looked at Spectre. "Since we'll be going out on a date, I suppose this will cancel out the Grudge Match?"

"Yes."

"Well then, how about tomorrow? Because I'm pretty sure I won't have to deal with any shenanigans for the day. Aside from the normal crap with Rez and having an earful from probably Zavala and Ikora today when I get back."

"Yeah, that'll work."

"See you tomorrow." Spectre gave a two-fingered salute at the Huntress before he had Primus materialize back into his palm and transmat him to his custom-colored _Fatal Vision_ , leaving Reaper in the dome where Cayde keeps his stash. As for the Bladedancer, she remained frozen in place, speechless and not having enough time to say goodbye. Instead, she gave a half-wave at where the Sunbreaker stood before he was transmatted.

 **"Hmm…"** Rex's red and gray-colored shell whirred open and close, the blue 'eye' brighter as though it was scanning something.

"W-what is it, Rex?"

Rex closed her shell, facing her Guardian partner. **"That didn't go according to how you wanted it, didn't you?"**

"What are you talking about? _Of course_ it went how I imagined it!" the Huntress argued, her face still red.

 **"I knew it. You like him."**

"No I don't!"

 **"Don't lie to me, Reaper."**

"Stop it."

 **"Come** _ **onnn**_ **, admit it."**

"Little─"

 **"Fine! I'll cut it out!"** yelled the Ghost, the two having a moment of silence before Reaper jumped off a nearby edge of the dome and begin to parkour her way down instead of going down the conventional way. Instead of going with her, Rex stayed behind for a while, her shell in scanning mode. As soon as her scan was complete, she closed it, the rear part whirring in a disappointed notion.

 **[** _ **That's odd…**_ **]** She faced where the Echo of Oryx faced its demise by the Sunbreaker, then up towards the sky. **[** _ **For a second, I thought I picked up a powerful concentration of the Darkness just as that shadow was being incinerated alive by Spectre's element-infused Sunstrike…**_ **]**

 **[** _ **It can't be…can it?**_ **]**


	6. I-VI: Lightning in the Solar Storm

**We interrupt this chapter of** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **for some announcements! First off, I'd like to congratulate everyone who were fortunate to stumble onto my latest piece for reaching 606 views (as of 12/27/15, 10:19 AM Pacific time) and it's rising faster than I originally thought it would get! Thank you guys so much for all of this! This wouldn't be much of an accomplishment to many fanfics on the site, but it's a milestone for me ever since I posted** _ **Reloaded**_ **which has acquired only 7.1% of the total views from** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **(yikes, that's…a little harsh. Then again, maybe it's because I didn't update for 10 months or that's how all remakes are…).**

 **As a way of saying 'thank you' to all you guys, I figured that I would make this chapter a (unfortunately) late Christmas/Holiday present from me to all of you guys for all the support! This will be the last chapter I'll make in 2015, but there will be more coming when the New Year rolls in for us!**

 **Okay, I know that this chapter won't continue off from the last one where Spectre and Reaper would go on a date, but at least I have something for you guys! An entire chapter dedicated to the shenanigans of one of the funniest, most awesome shows on Youtube:** _ **Red vs. Blue**_ **! *Cough cough* Majority of chapter is based on an episode from Season 5. *cough cough***

 **Enough chitchat, let's jump into it and see what a normal (well, not entirely 'normal' today) day in Fireteam Nero Bianco's shoes works out!**

 **Also, just to get a feeling to the vibe/theme I see in** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **, I recommend listening to "Writing's on the Wall" by Sam Smith (Yeah, I know it was used for the recent Bond film, but I felt like it also fit in what's going on in** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **as well. Since, as I will mildly admit, Spectre has a tiny bit of Daniel Craig's interpretation of 007 in him in terms of how both of them get to the point of their missions. Also, no spoilers from the film, as I haven't seen it.). Well, either "Writing's on the Wall" or "New Divide" by Linkin Park after reading this chapter. Your pick.**

 **Rant for the game: Honestly, I like it better when Titans have their handcannons holstered like Hunters and not on the lower of their backs. Heh, I also realized that I made Spectre holster his Skyfall before the December 8 update was implemented to the game. Foreshadowing at the time then? Or just pure coincidence? Also, as I've been playing Destiny since it came out last year, I'm biased between both voices for the Ghost. Honestly, I like Nolan North's interpretation (since it gives me a feeling similar to Wheatley from** _ **Portal 2**_ **), but Peter Dinklage gives me a nostalgic feeling now that I look back at** _ **Destiny**_ **and how far it came since 2014 to now. I wish there was a setting that changes between both voice actors…**

 **I do not own Amelia, Firewing, Triton, Hurricane and Lucks. They are created by The Crimson Commando.**

 _ **Chapter VI: Lightning in the Solar Storm**_

* * *

 _A warm breeze brushed by Spectre's face, the setting sun clear as day upon the untamed wilderness of an unknown area on Earth. For a fact, this area was not the Russian Cosmodrome. It was somewhere else. Somewhere in the European Dead Zone._

Again… This damned dream again!

 _And damned it was. Here, the Sunbreaker is in no control of himself. He never wanted to witness this again. This is what haunted him down to his very core. It was a scar that he would never forget, nor try to erase it from his memories._

But why? Why is it happening now?!

 _There he stood, in the wasteland-like wilderness, with an iconic English clocktower in the far distance, and with it, a city. Before him was a Huntress, kneeling down in a pained and defeated motive. Her helmet was gone, next to her side and it was clear that Spectre could see the face even as the sun began to set. It was just like Reaper's face in terms of how beautifully defined it was, but this one had black hair and that it was ruined by black veins running all over her face like she was corrupted by something. Another disturbing thing was her eyes. It was the same color when he was hallucinating back when he slayed the Echo._

 _A sinister gold._

No, not again! NOT AGAIN!

 _But his pleas to make whatever force is forcing him to relive this continued to torture the leader of the Ancient Vanguard. A ghost that forced him to relive it stood at the sidelines invisible, silently cackling as it enjoyed the agony and torture that the Titan was facing. This invisible ghost was the one pulling the strings, reenacting his dreaded memories._

No!

 _Unable to control himself in this nightmare, Spectre took out the First Curse from his hip holster and aimed it at the Huntress's face. As though she sensed it, she looked upwards, further causing the knife to carve deeper than normal. Even if those golden eyes were lifeless or emotionless, he knew that underneath that veil was denial. They pleaded him not to kill her, not even in this state she's in. And at this point, he agreed with what her eyes were pleading him._

 _"Don't…" she rasped, her voice clearly strained as though she had been screaming continuously for the past few hours. "Please… Don't do it." Tears began to fall from her gold-colored eyes, and it hurt the Sunbreaker even further._

 _Spectre knew at this point he had said something back to the Huntress, but in this nightmare, it was muted. He raised the counterpart of the Last Word and aimed the barrel towards the Huntress's head. He cocked the hammer of the handcannon back, readying the round. If the Titan wanted to get out of this nightmare, it was too late. He's going to suffer the one part of this dreaded memory once more._

 _"_ … _I'm sorry." The Spectre in this memory apologetically said, and the Huntress closed her eyes._

NO!

 _Bang!_

* * *

The Titan awoke to a startle, springing up in his bed in his Fireteam's quarters. Sweat beaded across his forehead and his breathing became rather heavy, forcing him to press a palm to his forehead. A stinging feeling surged in his forehead, and he continued to hold his hand to his head. _Dammit… Why now out of all the times it could've done it? Better yet, why did it bother to even make me suffer again!?_ He sat at the edge of his bed after assessing what just happened, his breathing regulating as time passed. The pain faded away, and the Sunbreaker looked at his hand. _Is there nothing I can do to forget it all?_ The same blood that was on his face after the fight with the Echo of Oryx transferred to his hand, and for once, he didn't bother shaking it off. Even if it was a hallucination.

 _How can I live with this? Not even two years, and it haunts me to no end. No matter what I do to run from it, it always drags me back to my own hell._ His blue-gray eyes, darker than normal, focused their gaze on a shape resting on the bedside table. _There's a million shards of glass, and it still haunts me from my past._ He got out of bed and stood before his bedside table, staring at it both hatefully and regretfully.

Because sitting on the bedside was a handcannon.

The First Curse. Stained with blood along the barrel just like Red Death. _Her_ blood.

Spectre wanted to throw the handcannon out of his quarter's window or throw it into the icy waters of where he killed her, but that handcannon was the only thing left that has been imprinted with a memory of _her_. A memory that he never wanted to remember.

 _How do I live? How do I breathe? When you're not here, I'm suffocating in my own regrets. I just want to feel love run through my blood…but I'll never be that way because I killed you._ Reluctantly, he picked up the First Curse, his hand brushing against the blood-stained frame like the gun was a lover's hand.

"I know you would never forgive me," he mourned, hand around the grip moving away to reveal an emblem printed on it. A wolf's head similar to the emblem on Skyfall's frame, but with a Hunter's knife in its mouth and the same knives on the sides of the head. Her insignia.

"Is that why I'm being punished with these nightmares of that day…? Vesper?"

 _ **-Destiny-**_

 **"To start sending a message, please start─"**

 _"I HATE YOU!"_ A Hunter roared irritatingly in front of his Ghost, Sundial, scaring it and forcing it to send a message. "Melia, its Firewing. When are you─?"

 **"Sorry Firewing, but Amelia's not taking messages at this time of the day."** The other Ghost on the other end of the comms channel, Phoenix, informed, forcing the cyborg Hunter to enter a frustrated groan before the comms channel closed.

"Ugh, I'm gonna kill that Ghost, I'm gonna kill that Ghost."

"Dude, just chill out. I mean, you and Amelia's been going after each other for a while, but pushing it today? Not cool." An Exo Titan, Lucks, answered. As much as Firewing was a member of Fireteam Death, including Lucks and another Exo─a Warlock, unfortunately─ everyone's gotta have their problems.

"Lucks, I got some word from her that an unknown ship's been spotted headed towards the City from the outer reaches of the Reef. Tri's busy getting the Twilight House set up, and I seriously don't think that both we and Amelia can investigate it without our ships being blown up to pieces!"

"Why not ask Spectre and his team? They've done stuff like that before."

The Hunter facepalmed. "Lucks, did you not hear? All ships can't go past Earth's orbit without a good reason─aside from patrols and bounties─, and Spectre's team isn't excluded this time because of what Cayde made him do yesterday!"

"Uh, Firewing?"

"What?!" The Exo pointed behind the human, and said Hunter turned around at the sound of several ships headed towards the Tower. He saw Amelia's _Quite Content Damsel_ with the Jade Rabbit insignia imprinted on its middle fin. "Oh, there she is."

Another ship was behind Amelia's ship. A silver and black _Draught of Nectar_ , with a multitude of weapons that made it more of an attack-class ship rather than its original purpose. The Guardians in the plaza caught sight of the intimidating ship and they all immediately raised their weapons as the ship positioned itself over the grass instead of docking in the hangar, letting the pylons attach themselves to anchor itself and remain hovering over the plaza.

 _"Fireteam Nero Bianco, please report to the hangar bay_ immediately _."_

 _Wait, what?_ The two members of Fireteam Death watched as Spectre, Rez and Silver walked from the Hall of Guardians towards the hangar, walking normally as though nothing was wrong. Well, Firewing supposed that was because of some other reason unlike the time Death was caught working with the House of Winter a while ago.

As sudden as this turn of events were, the Guardians in the area re-holstered their weapons and began to talk with others nearby, wondering why the elite of the Vanguard's Fireteams were called to the hangar. And that included Lucks and Firewing.

"What was that all about?"

The Exo shrugged. "Beats me. Haven't seen Nero Bianco get into trouble since… Well, never."

"It couldn't get any worse than what we had to go through! Who knows what could be on that ship?! It could be Cabal that commandeered a Guardian's ship, or maybe Fallen! Maybe it could be a decoy that has been rigged to blow up! Or─"

* * *

"Spectre's sister?!"

"Is that a problem, Hunter?" the sister of Nero Bianco's leader coldly questioned, cracking her knuckles in the case that she needs to teach someone some manners. She faced the Sunbreaker, a faint smile on her lips under her helmet. "Spectre. It's good to see you again."

"Seeing as it's been, what? Nine years since I last saw you?" (A/N: Humans' lifespan in _Destiny_ is tripled due to the Golden Age, and Spectre is physically 23-24, meaning he's 69-72 years old due to the Golden Age).

"And you weren't always in black armor, last I remember. Had a habit of using red and black shaders," she reached for her helmet and removed it, revealing long blonde hair in a shade similar to Spectre's with red tips as well as a lighter shade of blue eyes. "And with those years, you must have improved greatly."

The Sunbreaker scoffed. "Seeing as you were always in the Trials nonstop since the day you left and never came back, it's no surprise that I did, Light. Plus, how the hell did you find me?!"

"There's only one place most Guardians would be mostly found. Plus, I had Artemis follow Primus's scan signatures."

"Explains the armor," muttered Rez, to which he earned a death stare from Spectre's sister. "I always knew that there was a silver of a chance that Spectre had some relatives, but I held on to the hope that he was the byproduct of a Pre-Golden Age military program that turned their test subjects into unstoppable soldiers!" (A/N: Cough cough *another famous franchise by Bungie reference* cough cough)

The next thing he knew, the new Titan and his commander in both the Fireteam and Ancient Vanguard punched him in the face at the same time, sending the Hunter into a Sparrow power core. It exploded on his impact, throwing him out of the hangar and down the cliff where the Tower rested.

 _"Son of a biiiiiiitch!"_ the three hear the Hunter call out as he plummeted down and his Ghost, Church, appeared before them as a blue orb.

 **"Guardian down."** He muttered, delaying the respawn time for his partner to return because of apparently insulting Spectre in front of his sister.

"I'll deal with him, Spectre. Gotta let you and your sister catch up," Silver walked over to where Church was hovering and brought Rez back.

"You son of a bitch! I'm gonna─!" before Rez could go up to the Titans, he was held back by the Warlock and Spectre held his sister back before things could get out of hand.

"Sis, calm down!"

"I'll rip that godforsaken throat of yours out! Then your eyeballs and force you to eat them while you're being ripped in half by my sword, you Hunter piece of shit! And if you're still breathing after I rip you in half, I'll rip your head off and put it on a pike for all the Hunters to see!"

"Then come at me, she-hulk!" just as Rez delivered the most insulting blow that further angered the female Titan, the Exo holding back the human Hunter freed one of his hands from holding him back and ignited an Arc-infused force ignite. He placed a hand around the back of Rez's neck before he electrocuted him, shocking the Hunter to the degree that he was knocked out from being electrocuted.

"Sorry Rez, but you're being too much of an ass right now," apologized the Warlock, looking back at the Titans. "I'll take him back to the quarters, hopefully stop him from being an ass for the day." He began to carry the unconscious Hunter on his shoulder and walked out the hangar, ignoring the looks of the other Guardians that saw the Warlock carrying a Hunter.

"You realize that was a prototype Sparrow power core, you two." Amanda Holliday walked in on the Titans, hands on her hips and a mildly pissed off look on her face. "I was building that thing, and look what you two did! You blew it up!"

"Relax, Amanda. That wasn't a stable one. Plus, I know the blueprints to replace it. I'm not known for adding Exotic perks to Legendary armor for nothing."

"Stable? That power core was sensitive to impacts because of its current stage!" Holliday darted a dark glare at the Sunbreaker, to which he was somewhat intimidated. "You owe me big time, otherwise I'll have to talk to Hurricane to do it for me."

"I know. Just let me go back to my workshop and I'll rebuild one for you."

Light raised an eyebrow. "Wait, you have a Sparrow workshop?"

"Well, not exactly for Sparrows. How do you think I implemented Exotic perks to my Legendary armor?"

"…Good point."

"It better, since I need the engine for the new Sparrows for the Racing League. I have the new EV-class Sparrows to get on the track for test runs before I start rolling them out."

"Give me at least an hour. I'll bring a stable one for tests by then. If it's successful, then I'll send over the details to make copies of it." He began to walk away, gesturing his sister to follow him as they head over to his workshop.

* * *

"So this is it."

"Honestly, it's not on par with what we had before. But this is the Tower," Spectre began working on replacing the destroyed power core that Amanda intended to test before the SRL starts, Primus materializing and creating a replicated power core that he unintentionally destroyed. "No wonder it was unstable. The power conduit's energy output configuration is all wrong, which would explain why the energy is too much for it to handle. Just what is Amanda trying to do? Make more Overdrive Sparrows?"

 **"I don't think that would be the case. According to the roster of new Sparrows for SRL, there are going to be Destabilizer and Normal Sparrows. No sign of Overdrive Sparrows anywhere on it."**

Spectre cracked his knuckles. "Primus, tell Amanda that I'll be sending over a power core for the Normal and Destabilizer Sparrows to test within 30 minutes."

 **"Already did."**

Spectre's sister watched as her brother began to work on the power core, sparks flying and the constant whirring of power measurers informing the Sunbreaker whether it was stable or not. She stood near the doorframe, back resting against it and arms crossed. "Do you know why I'm here, really?"

"Let me guess; involves a new threat to our System, leader of said threat is the father of a Hive god, and said father is after a specific Fireteam that put down his son on the Moon?"

"I'd say you got it right. But its not just the Taken that's the problem here."

"What else do we need to worry about? Vex? The Fallen? Or is it Triton and that new House he founded?"

"It's the Cyphers." His sister informed.

Spectre stopped what he was doing and put the tools down, a look crossing both hate and feeling grim on his face. "What do they want?"

"They want to know what's the progress on the mission."

"I've told them months ago, it's not the time yet. Who knows how long it will take until the time comes?" he picked up his tools again and started adjusting the conduits in the core, ensuring that they can withstand the amount of power the Sparrows need to be used time and time again. "Because if it were up to me, I'd tell them that the mission should be completed when the Light has its back against the wall."

"By then, it would be too late."

"Then how would they react when our mission's directive just before it happens? Surely by then they would turn on _us_."

"A good point, indeed," she unfolded her arms and took out a sidearm from her hip holster, inspecting the weapon like it was an entirely alien object. From her Mark, she drew out a knife and started spinning it around her hand before entering a CQC stance with her sidearm and knife. After checking the sights to see if they were in perfect sync, she put away both her knife and sidearm. "…How are you holding up, Spectre?"

Spectre stopped working on reconfiguring the power core's conduits as soon as he heard the question, putting down the tools meant for readjusting the conduits. The nightmares of that day began to flash in his head, forcing him to shake his head to get rid of it. Looking at his Ghost, he nodded for Primus to continue working on the power core's energy output as he turned in his chair and faced his sister, exhaling heavily. "You well know the answer to that question, Lightning."

"I thought by now you would've gotten over it."

"No. You had no idea how much I tried to let go of it, but the nightmares of that day still haven't let go of me. Even if it has been two years since."

Lightning frowned. "I know how much she meant to you. You two were perfect for each other, and then…"

"Shit hit the fan hard."

"You can't keep blaming the Cyphers for─"

"The hell with the Cyphers!" he sprang up from his chair, anger boiling over at their mention. "Do you have any idea how much I _hate_ them for forcing my hand?! Even if they tasked me with an important mission like a week after I killed her? A mission which I'm still doing to this day?!"

"…Is there really no way to bring you back? Back to the brother I once knew before I left?"

As much as he felt guilty for what's going on with him since Lightning left for the Trials, he knew the answer to her question. "Not entirely. There is some of the old me, but only a shard out of the millions that once defined me. Everything else has been shattered, gone since Vesper's death. And there's no way to bring those destroyed pieces back." He faced his sister, someone he once knew was just like a gender-bent clone of himself before they parted ways.

"But all in all, it's good to see you again."

"Agreed, brother."

* * *

 **Well, who would've expected a new character to join the fray?! And from me, no less! No one? Meh, okay then.**

 **So, who** _ **are**_ **these 'Cyphers'? Are they connected to the Vanguard and the City? I'll leave it up to your interpretation. But know this: once there's a real answer to the Cyphers, will you realize who they are and what significance they have before they are revealed?**

 **Here's Spectre's sister's profile:**

 **Lightning:**

 **Main Subclass: Story-exclusive, modified Striker that combines Arc and Solar elements 'Sunstriker' (Talent Nodes used: Solarstorm Grenade (Combines Incendiary Grenade from Sunbreakers with Arcbolt and Pulse Grenades from Stormcallers and Strikers); Balanced Lift (Lift, provides a balance between Increased Height, Increased Control, and Catapult); Infernal Punishment (Super, combines Death from Above and Aftermath from Striker with the bigger explosions effect of Forgemaster from Sunbreaker); Arcburn Strike (Solar/Arc combined melee with Discharge effect from Striker and Stoke the Forge's insta-cooldown effect from Sunbreaker); Titan Codex III; Explosive Shock (Combines Explosive Pyre's 'exploding, chaining damage to enemies' effect with Aftershocks and Transfusion); Titan Codex V; Divine Sunstriker (normally regenerates health with every enemy brought down by the Solar/Arc fusion-based abilities, but also causes grenade and melee abilities to recharge faster in a stackable effect up to 3 times)**

 **Primary Weapon: Self-built Auto Rifle 'Empress of the Abyss' (story exclusive, treated as an Exotic weapon; follows a similar upgrade path to both SUROS Regime and Fabian Strategy, excluding it's special perks that make it unique (Perk column 0 description, Charged Up: When loading a fresh magazine and making the first precision kill, magazine will refill and impact will be increased for the duration of the magazine; Perk column 4 description, Empress of the Abyss: Kills with this weapon increases stability, reload speed, and impact greatly.). Weapon takes the frame of a black and gray-colored SUROS ARI auto rifle, but is bullpup-styled like pulse rifles with a curved magazine, mounted ballistic shield similar to Fabian Strategy, and features a SUROS SRO-41 scope with the range of a SRO-37 scope.**

 **Secondary Weapon: In Times of Need (Variant with High Caliber Rounds, Final Round and Range Finder), revamped silenced Walther CP99**

 **Heavy Weapon: Arc/Solar-fused Infinite Edge**

 **Ghost Shell: Dread Explorer lookalike**

 **Helmet: Golden Bull Mask (with an evasion perk similar to Graviton Forfeit and Twilight Garrison)**

 **Gauntlets: Winged Sun Gauntlets (with the Exotic perk of ACD/0 Feedback Fence)**

 **Chest: Winged Sun Chest (with the Exotic perks of the Armamentarium and Crest of Alpha Lupi)**

 **Legs: Blindsight Greaves (Grants Lightning a Solar/Arc-fused variant of Shoulder Charge)**

 **Mark: Thalor's Golden Maul**

 **Artifact: Echo of Honor**

 **Shader: Abydos Common**

 **Bio: Twin sister of Spectre, Lightning is the more tactical and soldier-like of the two and can be straight to the point if she wants…which is unfortunately all the time, both in combat and in missions. At 60, she and her brother parted ways as Lightning sought out to be stronger, leading her to the Trials of Osiris in the Reef. There, she earned a reputation as one of Osiris's greatest champions as she did the Trials alone flawlessly. While she was in the Reef, she was the first Guardian to work under the Queen as one of her personal knights and participated in the Reef Wars, and recently, the House of Wolves's escape. She, based on her ruthlessness against the Fallen during the Reef Wars, was once offered the position of Queen's Wrath before she declined it and let her only Awoken friend, Petra Venj, take it. Aside from Petra, her only other friend is member of the House of Judgment, Variks. Even if she is the older of the twins and the more battle-hardened to the point that she appears cold and standoffish outside of combat, she has a softer side in which she often worries about her brother, especially with the incident that changed him forever. Unlike typical Sidearm-bearing Guardians, Lightning utilizes not a Häkke Sidearm or one used by the Awoken in the Reef, but a Pre-Golden Age Walther CP99 semiautomatic handgun that has been heavily modified and tuned up to get on par with the standard Sidearms of now.**

 **For anyone curious as to how this new Huntress (Vesper) and Spectre appeared during his nightmare, here are the armor sets the two used:**

 **Spectre:**

 **Helmet: Knight Type 4**

 **Gauntlets: Knight Type 2**

 **Chest: Knight Type 4**

 **Legs: Knight Type 1**

 **Mark: Mark of the Watcher**

 **Shader: Debt Unpaid**

 **Vesper:**

 **Helmet: Cryptid 4.6.2**

 **Gauntlets: Cryptid 4.6d**

 **Chest: Cryptid 4.6**

 **Legs: Cryptid 4.6.2**

 **Cloak: Hardcase Cloak**

 **Shader: Aurora Blur**

 **Hope you guys enjoy this late Christmas present of mine, and I'll see you guys in 2016!**


	7. I-VII: Something to Remember

**Prophet (my Ghost): WarNIng-wARniNG: ComMUNNicaTions HACked! UnaBLE TO─**

 ***White noise***

 **Me: PROphET?! WhaT ThE Hell Is gOINg ON─?!**

 ***White noise cancels out comms-and an electronic whine cancels the white noise***

 **[** _ **23-5 1-18-5 20-8-5 3-25-16-8-5-18-19.**_

 _ **20-8-5 1-2-19-15-12-21-20-9-15-14 4-9-18-5-3-20-9-22-5 9-19 3-15-13-9-14-7.**_

 _ **20-8-5 20-15-23-5-18, 20-8-5 3-15-14-19-5-14-19-21-19, 1-14-4 20-8-5 22-1-14-7-21-1-18-4 23-9-12-12 16-1-25 6-15-18 23-8-1-20 20-8-5-25 4-9-4 20-15 21-19.**_

 _ **15-14-5 15-6 21-19 19-20-1-14-4-19 1-13-15-14-7 20-8-1-20 '19-1-6-5 8-1-22-5-14' 25-15-21 3-1-12-12 20-8-5 3-9-20-25.**_

 _ **23-1-9-20-9-14-7.**_

 _ **23-1-20-3-8-9-14-7 1-12-12 15-6 20-8-15-19-5 23-8-15 3-1-12-12 20-8-5-13-19-5-12-22-5-19 '23-1-18-18-9-15-18-19 15-6 20-8-5 12-9-7-8-20'.**_

 _ **20-15 20-8-5 20-15-23-5-18, 20-8-5 3-15-14-19-5-14-19-21-19, 20-8-5 22-1-14-7-21-1-18-4, 1-14-4 20-8-5 19-16-5-1-11-5-18 23-5, 3-25-16-8-5-18-19 4-5-12-9-22-5-18 25-15-21 1 23-1-18-14-9-14-7.**_

 _ **23-5 23-9-12-12 18-9-19-5 1-7-1-9-14 19-20-18-15-14-7-5-18, 20-8-1-14 25-15-21 18-5-13-5-13-2-5-18 21-19.**_

 _ **1-14-4 23-8-5-14 25-15-21-18 3-9-20-25 1-14-4 20-18-1-22-5-12-5-18 9-19 15-14 20-8-5 22-5-18-7-5 15-6 2-5-9-14-7 20-1-11-5-14 5-24-16-5-3-20 14-15 8-5-12-16 6-18-15-13 21-19.**_

 _ **20-8-9-19 9-19 20-8-5 16-18-9-3-5 25-15-21 23-9-12-12 1-12-12 16-1-25 6-15-18 25-15-21 4-9-4 23-8-1-20 25-15-21 4-9-4 20-15 21-19!**_ **]**

 ***Transmission ends***

 **Me: Prophet, what was that?**

 **Prophet: I don't know, but from what I can tell, this is a ciphered message. Has to be a letter-to-number simple substitution cipher. I can't pick off any coordinates or broadcast origin from it. It's almost as though whoever's transmitting this is covering up their tracks.**

 **Me: Can you decrypt it?**

 **Prophet: I can't do it immediately. Remember, I have the same mental limitations as you humans. All Ghosts do.**

 **Me: *Sighs frustratingly* I guess it will have to wait. Prophet, just decipher what you can in time for the next chapter. Let's get on with what Spectre and Reaper will go through. Also, I apologize for this chapter taking way too long to write. I had a lot going downhill after the last update and that I'm comparing my previous attempts at writing dates to this one now.**

 _ **Chapter VII: Something to Remember**_

* * *

 _Exodus Park, the City_

Why the hell do I feel nervous? Is it because I'm pretty much going out with someone for the first time since two years ago? Or is it something I fear? Guess it's because I need to open up now, for Reaper to better know me. Not a lot of people know me better under the 'Greatest Titan among other Titans', 'Protégé/second-in-command to Commander Zavala' and 'Leader of one of the most respected Fireteams and groups under the Vanguard' titles. Well, scratch the 'not a lot of people know me' thing, because it's only two people. And one of them is dead.

The sun's about to set on the City, and here I am waiting in the City's central park located directly below the Traveler. As I sat on a bench, dressed in casual wear; comprising of jeans, a red shirt and an unzipped black Harrington jacket with the collar popped up, I looked up at the one who gave us the ability to use the Light as a weapon and faintly smiled. As much as I owe the Traveler a lot for everything I've done in my time as a Guardian, there's still more I have yet to do. Thank the Traveler that I was able to convince Zavala that Lightning was a friendly and a sister I haven't seen in a long time. But Ikora…even though I respect Warlocks, Ikora's particular fondness for sticking her nose into others' businesses is invading and just plain wrong. Now she's suspicious of Lightning.

Earlier today, Reaper told me we would meet in Exodus Park─the one I'm in right now─right after she was done with something going on in the Cosmodrome. Based on comms with her, it sounded like Taken were advancing on the City and Fireteam Gulch needed help from Dragon. And Lightning was there, of course. At least I don't have to face her with what I'm doing right now. At least Silver knows what's going on, and he said he'd keep his mouth shut about it after I'm done tonight.

As the minutes passed by, some of the park-goers saw me and started asking for photos and autographs. There were the occasional girls that wanted to go out with me, but I fabricated the story that I was here on leave and not here on a date with another Guardian. There was even a little kid with his parents who wanted to be a Guardian like me when he grows up. I ruffled his hair and told him that when the time comes, he can be one of us. Heh, guess this is the fame and recognition a Guardian gets for taking out the Black Garden and continued to defend the City against the likes of Crota and Skolas, and not just by fellow Guardians. Plus, I heard it's rare for Guardians to be in the City, regardless of being on duty or not. Maybe it's because that our Ghosts are literally hovering over our shoulders since they have no place to hide.

"Not to sound like a guy desperate for a date, but do you think she ditched us?" I asked my Ghost, to which his shell clicked and whirred as he pondered on the question.

 **"Not really. C'mon Spectre, how long have we known each other? I know how long your patience can be, outside of people ignoring you like what happened to 20."**

"…Good point."

"Hey, sorry I'm late!" I turn my head from the bench. Well, here she is. I got up from the bench. Like me, Reaper decided to dress in her own casual wear; gray bomber jacket, boots and jeans with her hair draped over her shoulders. Rex hovered over her left shoulder like Primus. "How long have you waiting for me?"

Primus and I traded looks before I looked back at her. "Don't worry. You made us wait for about half an hour, but it's understandable based on what you were doing."

 **"Yeah, busy deciding what to wear for the date tonight."** Rex joked, causing Reaper to go into another of her flusters.

"These are the only things I have!"

"And here I thought waiting was boring." I said, causing the Huntress and her Ghost to look at me.

"Oh? And just what were you doing while you were waiting for me?"

"Just the usual: signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, even giving a little kid some motivation to be a Guardian like us." I joked, faintly smirking.

"Feeling like a celebrity after everything you did for the City?" I hear her joke, cracking a warm smile.

I crossed my arms. "Not really. A lot of the City's citizens look up to us Guardians, and not just me and you."

"You're right on that part," she pulled an apple and another of her knives out of her bomber jacket and started cutting it, then popping a slice in her mouth. "We're here now, so what are we going to do on this beautiful night?"

Okay, now I feel that she just stole the words right out of my head. _Isn't that what guys should say on their date, or am I taking it the other way around?_

 **[** _ **Actually, both sides of the date can say that. But she beat you to the punch on saying it.**_ **]** Primus answered in my thoughts, and right there and now I mentally facepalmed.

 _Since when do you know how this type of thing works!?_

 **[** _ **How else would I know how it works?**_ **]** Dammit, I forgot: Epsilon told him based on her and her partner's experiences with me and Primus. How could spending time with the one woman I loved fly over my head…oh wait. Now I remember.

"Actually, there's a small restaurant near Exodus. Been there a couple of times."

"Let's go, then."

I gesture for her to follow me, leading the way with her at my side. As I focus to find the restaurant─been quite a while since I was last there, I might add─, my memories of my time with Vesper started to surface. I remember when we had our dates, always started like this, then went for either a restaurant or a simple walk under the park. It's not just the First Curse that retains memories of her, but also of many other things. But there's more to the handcannon I simply refuse to use anymore and leave on my bedside table to collect dust. More than just having the memory of killing her out of being forced.

"Is everything okay, Spectre? You seem spaced out."

I turn to face her stone-colored gaze. "Before this? Well, dealing with Rez's crap─as usual, training new Guardians who were fortunate enough to stumble onto the Ancient Vanguard, sorting out a Sparrow power core I may or may not have destroyed for Amanda in time for SRL, I can just go on. Oh, and the fact I had to clear something up with a new Guardian."

"New?"

"Well, not exactly new. They were coming in from the Reef after spending a long time in the Vestian Outpost, and they have never been to the Tower in that time."

"That explains the ship hovering over the plaza when I got back from the Cosmodrome, and the fact that I heard you were called to the hangar to see what was going on."

"Zavala was just about to kick them out of the Tower, but I intervened before he could." Okay, thank the Traveler that I stopped myself short of saying that it was my sister. Then she would be asking a lot of questions.

"Friend of yours?"

"You could say that," again, I glanced over at the Huntress as we walked down the path, avoiding the gaze of most City civilians that would recognize me. "So what about you? What's your side of the story? Aside from dealing with Taken in the Cosmodrome."

A small chuckle with a shake of her head. "Outside of that, nothing much. Still keeping my hunting skills at top form, trying to not be Taken with the help of the prototype you gave me yesterday, being a watcher in the dark to new Guardians out in the Cosmodrome, that type of thing."

"Trying to avoid attention with the new Guardians?"

"More of a 'hidden ally' thing." Okay, that just plain old reminds me of the Stranger, though I'm not sure about comparing the two with one another.

After spending a few more minutes walking, we found our way to the restaurant in question. It was a small establishment, sitting along the road like most of the buildings here and attracted quite a few. I used to go here frequently during my earlier days as a Guardian, but that dwindled down to like once or twice a month now. Guess that's a letdown of all the recognition I have now.

"For all the times I've been to this part of the City, I never saw this before." I hear Reaper gasp in awe, taking in the appearance of the restaurant.

"Not a lot of people go down here. From what I know, this place serves a lot of Guardians fortunate to come here. It's not common for the civilians here."

"Been here before?"

I nod. "A lot during my earlier days as a Guardian. It might not be well known, but the food they serve here and their service are spot-on from my own experiences." Here, I think I just made Reaper very interested in the restaurant. I can just tell from her body language.

"Let's go then. I'm hungry."

For some reason, I smile. I don't know why, but it feels like Vesper never left, and is still here with me. "Shall we?"

* * *

"Look who it is! The big man himself!" one of the waiters called out as soon as I entered the restaurant, and I gave a two-fingered salute back. "How long has it been, Spectre?"

"By my count, it's been two or so months since then, Matt." Knowing Matt, he was probably expecting me. I _am_ one of his valued Guardian customers after all.

"Who's the lovely lady, Spectre?" he flashed one of his signature grins, and I saw Reaper's face turn a slight red upon hearing the comment. "I thought you were the type that would stand on their own without a woman."

Ignoring that comment, I turned to face the Bladedancer. "Reaper, this is Matt. Matt, this is Reaper."

"As in the Predator?"

Reaper sprung to life when the waiter mentioned her title. "How'd you─?"

"Matt was a former Hunter," I explain. "We both met in the Iron Banner, but as it turns out, we met during the Sepiks Prime strike when I was still a new Titan."

"Been kicking ass in the Iron Banner, till someone decided to call me a cheater because I was just doing my job on my side of the team!" he stuck another of his toothpicks in between his teeth like a cigarette, chewing on it to deal with that incident, "Was banned from the Tower after a lot of real bad juju after the Iron Banner last September─and I'm not talking about that Pulse Rifle─and a very bad injury that my Ghost couldn't heal, so I decided to stay here in the City."

"And that's why you made me your personal Iron Banner moneymaker. Because I'm so damned unstoppable with a 3.0 and above K/D Ratio?" knowing Matt, he probably just realized he got burned. So I may not have the best punchlines and puns, sue me.

"But enough talk of the past. It's good to see you, buddy." He directed the two of us to an open table, not that there was anyone else around the place aside from the employees and me and Reaper. We sat down, and Matt handed the both of us menus. "Just the usual, Spectre?"

"Chicken salad, with a vodka martini." I reminded him, looking over at Reaper while she skimmed through the menu. "Matt, get the martini right this time. I told you again and again, _shaken_ ; not _stirred_." I cringed when I recalled the times Matt brought me a vodka martini that was the complete opposite of what I asked. Had to avoid drinking stirred martini for days after I take a drink from it.

"Got you this time," he took note of my order, then looked over at my date, "And you, ma'am?"

She closed the menu. "Tonjiru with the same drink, just with gin, an olive and stirred."

My jaw slightly hung open, but I quickly closed it shut to avoid looking like an idiot instead of a renowned Guardian. Not because of Reaper taking the complete opposite of my normal martini with vodka, a thin lemon slice and shaken, but that…

That's the exact same martini that Vesper had when we went out to dinner, down to using gin and being stirred.

Snap out of it, Spectre! It's just a coincidence! Has to be…

"It'll be ready in a bit. I'll let you two have your time." Matt began to walk away and to tell the cooks of the order, leaving the two of us be. Feeling bold enough, I started to talk to Reaper.

"How long were you known as the 'Predator', Reaper?"

"Not very long. Seeing as I was a stealthful Hunter before I got my nickname, I just grew out of it since the other Guardians started calling me that during the strikes I participated in," she looked over at her Ghost hovering above her shoulder, then back at me, "What about you? You weren't always known as the Hive Conqueror or the Swarm Culler. You earned that title right at the anniversary of when the City first stood."

"I guess you're right on that part. I went by a lot of different names; 'Hotshot', 'Untouchable', 'Bull's Eye' and 'Brawler', to name a few, mostly for my knack of using red and black shaders and just charging right into the heat of battle and making it out alive," if there was a Titan's equivalent of Ikora during her younger years, I'd guess it'd be me. Not biased here. "Over the course of Year 1, I began to change. Instead of depending on myself, I began to rely on Silver and Rez─even though he's just a plain old sore loser in the Crucible─, even depend on other Guardians if the three of us can't get the job done."

"Why did you change from red and black to just plain black?"

I bit my tongue before I spoke. Even if it was four years since I killed Vesper─two years prior to Year 1 and now four─, her death kept on haunting me over the course of Year 1. I guess you can say it's a Guardian's equivalent of mourning at a funeral. Vesper's death is a wound that will never heal as long as I live. Even if I try to forget, it's a scar on myself.

"…I guess you could say it was because of me wanting to try one color instead of two. Started with Superblack, and after the Festival of the Traveler, The Old Guard."

"You earned it."

"Three medals of honor after defending the City from the Black Garden, Crota and Skolas, a distinguished service cross, plus earning a place in the Hall of Guardians among Zavala, Ikora and Cayde while representing an official group approved by the Speaker? I'd say that's more than what I should've earned." I paused for a bit, recalling the various medals and awards I earned from the Festival of the Traveler that are on my wall back in my room. Rez and Silver earned the same things after the Crumble of the Black Garden, but we still stuck as a team. "But really, all those times to me seem like they were just nothing. Just duty."

"They do mean something!" I was taken aback by Reaper's sudden protest against what I thought were nothing more than small feats. "No other Guardian I know has successfully defended the City from threats on three separate occasions throughout the year or earned a spot in the Hall of Guardians!"

"What I meant by that is that while it _is_ something worthy of a legend, my point of view differs on that subject. Not because I hate it, mind you, but because of how many times I fought over and over for the sake of the Traveler and the City. And that, to me, is just a small step towards something greater. There's yet more to come, and a lot of obstacles with this new threat."

"Spoken like Zavala," she warmly smiled, propping an arm on the table to support her hand on her face. Right now, it feels like both her being here and my memories of Vesper are starting to blur, but I have to remember that Vesper is not here. "You never shoot to miss, do you?"

"Not even once. Not now, and not ever."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a blur of blonde hair with red highlights pass by the window of the restaurant. Oh great. Now _she_ knows. As though there was a whiplash, the figure turns around and leaves. I sunk in my seat a little bit, knowing what'll happen once I get back to the Tower. Soon after, Matt approached the table with our drinks ready. He places them on our respective sides of the table and tells us that our food will be ready in a bit before leaving.

I took a sip from my drink, hoping to expect the flavor I wanted. After taking the risk of probably not drinking vodka martinis for weeks, I smirked and set the glass down on the table. Guess Matt got it right this time after all… It's shaken, just the way I like it.

"…I think I'll call that one a vesper."

"Because of the sweetness when you drink it, then comes the bitter aftertaste?" Reaper finished taking a sip from her martini, looking at me as soon as she's finished. What's up with people who I trust more than enough in the battlefield saying things that my lover had said when she was alive? Now that I look at Reaper's face, my vision started to blur and I saw half of her face replaced with Vesper's.

"Because once you've tasted it, you won't drink anything else." I said, not paying attention to what I said. Reaper gives me a look that clearly says 'what are you talking about?' all over it. I quickly apologized about the whole thing and proceeded to take another sip from my martini.

Just in the nick of time, Matt comes in and brings our food. After we got it, we took our time eating it and discussed things over our experiences during Year 1, such as us working alone on the battlefronts before I got roped into a Fireteam that would later be known as Nero Bianco and how we were able to hold off on our own against the Fallen and the Hive on multiple occasions in the same year. Odd… After all this time in which I wouldn't tell anyone about what happened to me two years prior to the start of Year 1, especially to someone I only knew a little over a week ago and started to trust. I was lightening my load that I had carried since Vesper's death. And right now, it feels like I'm talking to Vesper about the hardships and obstacles I've faced throughout Year 1 instead of Reaper. But of course, I'm not actually telling Reaper that I had killed a fellow Huntress out of being forced to.

Matt came by after we finished eating, and he passed me the bill. And oddly like when we first met a week ago, Reaper had Rex open up her Glimmer storage unit to pay. I stopped her before she started pouring fistfuls of the currency into Matt's hand and told her I would cover it this time. Remembering what happened when Banshee declined her amount of Glimmer for Starfall, she pouted and started putting the cubes back into her storage unit.

Heh, maybe I was long overdue for a small change this time around…

 _ **-Destiny-**_

After parting ways as soon as we got back to the Tower, I began the journey back to my quarters in the Tower and made a beeline. Knowing this time of the night, Rez was already asleep and Silver was either studying the work made by Toland and Ikora or collaborating with 20/20 on the 2.0 materials for the Taken membrane. After the success of the field tests that Reaper took─yes, my field test armor was busted, and that the data got corrupted somehow─, the other Guardians started to utilize them and the team Silver was working with began creating variations of the field tests that Reaper and I used. Yes, they're still in the prototype stage, but we need the protection from the membrane.

I walked into the living room, which is now 100% free from that membrane that Silver got. The lamp was dimly lit, almost as though it activated automatically. Yawning, I proceeded to get a glass of water and started pouring myself a glass.

"Where were you?"

Sighing, I put the ice-cold pitcher down on the table as soon as I heard the slide of a sidearm cocking and I put my hands up. I turned around to face Lightning, who aimed her relic CP99 at me as though I was intruding. Relax, she doesn't need to know…

"I was out for a break. Thought I would get some breathing time from what's been going on."

She lowered her sidearm to her side, and I knew that was a signal for me to stop looking like an idiot and put my hands down. I continued to pour water from the pitcher until the glass was full. I offered her a glass as well and she accepted my offer, the two of us sitting down at the table after I handed her a glass and looking at each other face to face like brother and sister.

"You still hate the Cyphers, do you?"

I tightened my grasp around my glass tightly, making sure I didn't break it with the strength I have. "Why do you think I refuse to stay with them for more than thirty seconds when giving my report?"

"Look, you're not the only one who hates the Cyphers for a reason. Why do you think they sent me away from you and out in the Reef among the Awoken?"

"You have a point. But tell me: after you were forced to kill someone you loved ever so dearly, would you take on a mission by the people who ordered you around? The ones who taught you everything you need to know about survival?"

Lightning took a large drink from her glass, setting it down and thinking. "I wouldn't."

"Exactly." I got up from my chair and started to walk to my room to sleep.

"So who was the girl you were out with?"

Not wanting to talk about it─plus that I'm getting tired─, I only gave one answer after I opened the door. "Goodnight, Light." I closed the door on her.

* * *

"The Taken were just the beginning…"

An eerie figured loomed over the table where Cayde, Ikora, Zavala and Spectre did their Vanguard duties, three dull green lights blazing to life. She rests a hand on the side of the table where the Ancient Vanguard leader did his duties, fingers brushing against a formation on the table to indicate an emblem or insignia that was resting there imprinted.

"Almost a century has passed…yet their determination to return is present here." The green glow normally associated with the Hive dimly shone on the emblem imprinted on the surface of the table.

"One of them is here, among us…hiding in sheep's clothing. But will he bring us more despair like the Disgraced One had delivered us long ago?" the shadow looming over the table recognized the emblem's design. There was no doubt about the origins of the emblem. She could see where the emblem's design came from, even if it was altered in any way.

"Or will he be the one to bring us hope? Hope not from the Light, but from the pits of the Darkness itself? Hope, and the path to slaying Oryx for good and bring us to a second Golden Age?"


	8. I-VIII: Infilitrating the Impossible

**Prophet: Link, I managed to do as you said…even though the original transmission itself erased itself after broadcasting. See? Told you someone's covering up their tracks.**

 **Me: Well? What were you able to find out?**

 **Prophet: From what I was able to remember after the broadcast erased itself, this was all I was able to get.**

 ***Prophet opens a hologram***

 **[WE ARE THE CYPHERS.**

 **THE ABSOLUTION DIRECTIVE IS COMING.**

 **THE TOWER, THE CONSENSUS, AND THE VANGUARD WILL PAY FOR WHAT THEY DID TO US.**

 **15-14-5 15-6 21-19 19-20-1-14-4-19 1-13-15-14-7 20-8-1-20 '19-1-6-5 8-1-22-5-14' 25-15-21 3-1-12-12 20-8-5 3-9-20-25.**

 **23-1-9-20-9-14-7.**

 **23-1-20-3-8-9-14-7 1-12-12 15-6 20-8-15-19-5 23-8-15 3-1-12-12 20-8-5-13-19-5-12-22-5-19 '23-1-18-18-9-15-18-19 15-6 20-8-5 12-9-7-8-20'.**

 **20-15 20-8-5 20-15-23-5-18, 20-8-5 3-15-14-19-5-14-19-21-19, 20-8-5 22-1-14-7-21-1-18-4, 1-14-4 20-8-5 19-16-5-1-11-5-18 23-5, 3-25-16-8-5-18-19 4-5-12-9-22-5-18 25-15-21 1 23-1-18-14-9-14-7.**

 **23-5 23-9-12-12 18-9-19-5 1-7-1-9-14 19-20-18-15-14-7-5-18, 20-8-1-14 25-15-21 18-5-13-5-13-2-5-18 21-19.**

 **1-14-4 23-8-5-14 25-15-21-18 3-9-20-25 1-14-4 20-18-1-22-5-12-5-18 9-19 15-14 20-8-5 22-5-18-7-5 15-6 2-5-9-14-7 20-1-11-5-14 5-24-16-5-3-20 14-15 8-5-12-16 6-18-15-13 21-19.**

 **THIS IS THE PRICE YOU WILL ALL PAY FOR YOU DID WHAT YOU DID TO US!]**

 **Prophet: To be truthful, I find what I've deciphered to be already disturbing. There are…things out there, whoever broadcasted this, are already spiteful of the City and the Vanguard.**

 **Me: Agreed. Plus, 'The Absolution Directive'? That doesn't sound good… Same drill as before, Prophet: decipher what you can in time for the next one. And as for this chapter based on 'The Dreadnaught' mission, I will be splitting it into two pieces due to how exhausting it is to play the mission for details and everything. Enough talk, let's get into it.**

 _ **Chapter VIII: Infiltrating the Impossible**_

* * *

"Okay, can _somebody_ explain how the hell did we get here?"

"How the hell are you one of Spectre's Fireteam members if you're complaining too much?" The Sunstriker stared into the abyss underneath them, then over the chasm between them and where a Hive Wizard hovered over the other side, taunting them just by hovering over the edge.

"I think the more appropriate phrase is, 'why the hell are you complaining if you knew how to modify stealth drives?'." Silver looked around the area he and his Fireteam was located in, bright blue optics scanning over everything to find another path across the chasm. "And I quote a certain Ghost, 'we're just stuck here with no ship _and_ no transmat zone'."

 **"Really feeling the attention, Silver."** Primus sourly retorted.

"You live and learn with what you got, sis, because beggars can't be choosers." Spectre scanned over the area, his customized handcannon at the ready. Even if Primus could be able to sense hidden objects, something about this place became unsettling the instant they landed. Even if it was the Hive's ship they're on.

"Even if they're complete wimps?"

Spectre turned to face Lightning. "Don't underestimate someone if they're complaining too much. Rez might look the part, but he's one hell of a sharpshooter…outside the Crucible, that is."

"A fact that I will… Hey!" Rez immediately caught on the Titan's insult, pointing one of his knives at him. However, he put it down in the fear of having the two punch him in the face again.

"Admit it, you killed yourself and July with a sniper round. And not on the same day, I may add."

"Okay, I get it!" Rez screamed, throwing his hands in the air. "You don't need to add more salt to injury!"

"Yes, I do have a need to do so… _If you're going to keep acting like an asshole!_ "

"Then stop with the punches to my pride!"

Under his helmet, Spectre rolled his eyes and gave up. He then threw a boot at Rez's gut, causing him to bend over and Spectre threw him over the chasm.

 _"NOT AGAAAAAAAAAIIIIINNNNN!"_ Rez bellowed as he plummeted into the darkness of the chasm, the Wizard watching as the Hunter helplessly get swallowed into the abyss within its ship.

"Oh, and do me a favor and tell me how deep that chasm goes!" Spectre called out into the abyss, receiving a single 'SCREW YOU!' in response. He shrugged as Church materialized next to him and faced Lightning. "Well, what _are_ we doing here anyway?"

The Sunstriker exhaled defeatingly. "Don't tell me that you forgot why we're here."

"It was a joke. _Of course_ I know why we're here."

"Then explain it."

 _Earlier…_

 **"Spectre? Spectre!"** Primus hovered over the form of the sleeping Sunbreaker, who was breathing heavily and thrashing about. Much to the Ghost's amazement, Spectre wasn't responding at all even though he was a light sleeper and didn't take loud noises lightly. He started to notice sweat begin to bead on his partner's forehead, and already Primus knew that Spectre was trapped in another nightmare.

"…No… I can't… I won't…!"

 **"SPECTRE!"** the Ghost screamed in the Titan's ear, but still he continued to thrash about and relive the nightmares. In his nightmare fueled trance, his arm sent the Ghost away from him, sending him into the table where the dust-collecting First Curse laid. **"I'm sorry Spectre, but I gotta do this…!"** the Ghost opened a holographic interface and started to select random commands that would seem ridiculous, until he selected a final one.

The roar of an Ahamkara blasted out of Primus's night-colored shell, the majestic yet terrifying scream of the creature roaring in the room, and most painfully, right in Spectre's ear.

The leader of the Ancient Vanguard escaped from the prison of his nightmares and sat straight up, the sweat now pouring down on him as a last scar from the prison of his past he suffered. Primus inched away from his partner, the blue 'eye' in the center of his black shell being the light on Spectre's face. He turned to Primus and grabbed the Ghost by the shell, growling at his prey.

"Primus…"

 **"Please don't burn off a part of my shell! I'm too good-looking to have a part burned off!"**

"…Thanks." The Sunbreaker let go of his Ghost, confusing the machine made by the Traveler's dying breath. "Thanks for using Dmitri's signature sound when he uses Dragon's Landing."

 **"I didn't want to do it, but you were in another nightmare."** Primus informed, watching as his partner sat at the side of the bed and press his hands to his face to forget what happened. While the two were partners, Primus knew the level of PTSD Spectre was suffering from, and the trauma of the realization of what he had done. Spectre's mental stability wasn't exactly as…stable…as it should be for a leader. Even if he had put up the façade that he was fine, but the terrible truth lay beneath that veil that a lot of Guardians never broke through.

"So why'd you wake me up?"

 **"It's Cayde."**

The mere mention of the Hunter Vanguard's name sent a wave of disgust towards the Titan, especially after the little 'errand' he ran for Cayde. Spectre pinched the bridge of his nose, waking his eyes up with that single gesture as he got out of bed. He walked over to the glass door that lead to the balcony on his part of the quarters and looked outside. Snow began to fall, and the snowflakes began to gather out on his balcony. The moon, waxy silver as ever, shone light in his room, soon illuminating his face the moment he stood before the glass door.

However, just as Spectre saw his reflection, he didn't grow remorseful of what he saw. Even so, he wasn't sure what was real and what was a product of his trauma anymore when he was alone. He simply stared at himself. Because his reflection stared back at him, but his eye that wasn't covered by his blonde locks warped into the same gold color that he saw on Vesper's face before she died.

 _"Spectre…"_ (A/N: Just to have a feeling to this following scene, play Aerith's Theme from _FFVII: Advent Children_. Right now, I'm comparing Spectre and Vesper to Cloud and Aerith because of the pain and suffering both Cloud and Spectre share… Screw it. Use it every time Vesper shows up!)

From his reflection, he saw a hand resting on his shoulder, which traveled down his forearm and found its place in his hand. Following the gentle hand on his shoulder was a face he knew all too well. Vesper stood at his side, resting her head on his shoulder lovingly and holding his hand in hers.

"Vesper…" the Sunbreaker put his head down and stared at the floor, his dead lover faintly smiling and holding him tighter. "Why'd you have to go? You were everything to me, but I─!"

 _"Enough,"_ she shushed him, nuzzling her head into the Titan's arm. _"I've heard it many times to know what conclusion you're trying to reach. I know how much you blame yourself for it all. It hurt you. Broke what leftover hope you had of trying to wish it didn't happen."_

Spectre tilted his head to have their heads meet, even though he was talking to a ghost of the woman he loved. He never knew why, but every time Vesper was here with him, her ghostly presence felt _real_ to him. Like she was still here, among the living. But in reality, the song-like voice she had, the beauty worthy of a goddess, and the melodious laugh he grew to love was all a hallucination after he killed her.

"You knew how much I would never hurt you, not even if we had known each other the moment we met as kids," he squeezed her hand, glancing up at the reflection and wore a frown on his face. "I spent four years running. Running from the memory of the day I had to kill you out of my own free will. But every time I ran away from it, it comes back stronger than before, and I guess I gave up on running away. I let the void swallow me whole, leaving me to drown in the memories of that day."

 _"But what about everything you've done?"_ asked the spirit of Spectre's love, letting go of his arm and standing in front of him. She placed her hand on his scar-torn cheek, tracing her index finger along it and frowned. _"The Black Garden, Atheon, Skolas, and then Crota. Do they mean nothing to you? You're a Guardian, Spectre. A Titan. A wall in which the Darkness breaks. A lot of Guardians, both old and new, look up to you. You're a shining example of what makes a true Guardian."_

"…They meant something for a while. Instead of helping me forget it all, they only held it back. I was a wall in which the Darkness breaks, but it all crumbled," he looked at Vesper and caressed her cheek, brushing strands of her hair aside with his thumb. "I don't know anymore… Some leader I turned out to be, huh? What kind of leader still mourns after all this time?"

 _"I know how much it hurts,"_ Vesper places a hand over Spectre's heart, clearly frowning and closing her eyes. _"Being a hero to the City, and yet, feeling like a criminal who killed one of their fellow Guardians. And it was me that's been the source of it all."_

"Vesper…"

 _"You won't stop beating yourself up because of my death. Every day, every night, even every waking moment you remember my death by your hand. You're not the man I loved for the most part. And it's because of your guilt that you won't return to normal again."_

"I just want to be myself again, but I will never get that chance. All because of me."

A tear began to fall from Vesper's face, looking down at the floor. _"Spectre, I've said this before, and I will not hesitate to say it again, so promise me something."_

"Promise you…?"

 _"Promise me that you'll move on. I don't want the man I love to suffer for the rest of his life as a miserable, emotionless killing machine."_ Vesper rested her head against her lover's chest, letting the tears fall without audibly crying. Spectre held her close, stroking her hair as she let them fall before looking into his eyes. _"You're better than that. You gave me the gift of happiness when I was rejected by everybody else, and I don't want it all to fall apart because of my death. Please, Spectre, just let it go. It's no use being stuck in the past."_

The Titan bowed his head and continued to hold the dead spirit of his lover close. _But if I let it go, then what will I remember of you? You were the only one that made me happy. No one else. I don't want my memories of you to fade away to nothing._ "…I can't guarantee that I'll let it go, but the least I can do is try," he lifted Vesper's chin with his finger, gazing into her eyes regretfully and lovingly. "I didn't want what happened that day to happen, but I couldn't say no to the Cyphers. You know how they are."

 _"You never really changed in some aspects, didn't you?"_ Vesper felt her lover wipe her tears off her cheeks, and she warmly smiled. _"That's what I love about you. Even through times like now, you still manage to have some of the old you show."_ Vesper then gave the Sunbreaker a peck on the cheek, taking a step back and smiling. Just five seconds into her smile, she began to fade away, and by the time Spectre blinked, she was gone. Vanished, faded away into the night like the ghost she is.

Primus hovered at the sidelines, watching his partner continue to stand close to the glass door. He dared not to get close to him, nor get his attention during the state he's in. He felt sorry for Spectre, having to suffer and yet, talk to illusions of his dead lover conjured from his PTSD.

"Primus, what does Cayde want now?"

Spectre's Ghost hovered over to his shoulder, shell whirring and clicking. **"Cayde has another unorthodox mission for you, and he wants you to meet him in the hangar. Oh, and he doesn't want you to talk to him through comms channel. Zavala and Ikora might catch on, and we might be restricted from leaving the Tower."**

"Typical of him. Sending a Titan to do some Hunter's work, especially with a Titan like me…" he turned towards his desk, where his Titan armor was resting, waiting for another day of being used. "Primus, tell Cayde that I'll be there in 30 minutes."

 **"Got it."**

 _ **-Destiny-**_

"Look who decided to show up!"

"Cayde, I swear if there isn't a good reason for waking me up at three in the morning, I'm not doing anymore 'errands' for you as long as you're still the Hunter Vanguard." Spectre growled, just waiting for the opportunity when he'd show Cayde some manners to a busy Guardian like him.

Normally, during the day, the hangar would be alive with a lot of machines and frames working on repairing the Guardians' ships as well as storing them. But tonight? The hangar was entirely empty, save for the ships suspended mid-air with supports that the frames would use to repair them and the Vanguards. The only light in the hangar was from the moonlight, shining down on the two while they blended in with the dark of the night.

"Hey, hey, no need to be all prickly," Cayde jested like normal, playing around with a wrench in his hand. "Besides, this'll probably be the last errand from me you'll have to worry about."

"And why's that?" the Titan crossed his arms, staring at the Exo. "Because if it means losing my spot in the Hall of Guardians, I'm putting you to blame for that. That, and make you pay me Glimmer to compensate that loss."

"Yeowch. Which is exactly why I called you out here at this time."

He paced around one of the ships suspended by the supports, pointing the wrench at it. Even if it was dark right now, Spectre could identify the ship Cayde was pointing towards. An eerie green glow, and decorated with bones… To Spectre's knowledge, there were only two ships that were rewarded to him from Eris after slaying Crota that match this one. But there was Eris's emblem imprinted on the nose of the ship. That meant two things.

And none of them were good.

"What the hell are you up to?! Eris will kill us!"

"That's why I had you get the stealth drive from my stash. Knowing the Hive, they'll pass off Eris's ship as one of their own…since it reeks like one."

"No kidding." Second the Titan, glad that his helmet had a filtration system to filter out the smell coming out of Eris's ship.

"So here's the plan: you fly to Saturn's rings, get in the Dreadnaught, take out that weapon that wiped out the Awoken, set up a transmat zone, and send in the calvary!"

"You make it sound simple, yet in reality, it becomes complicated as we progress in the mission."

Cayde handed Spectre the wrench, and as soon as the tool got in his hands, he immediately thought of swinging it and knocking out the Hunter Vanguard. Instead, he put it down and looked up at Eris's ship. _I swear, Eris will kill me…_ As much as he's a risk taker, he was willing to take the risk this time around…even if the 'vague oracle' will kill him.

"Off you go!"

"I'm not going alone, Cayde. You're coming with me."

"Me?" the Exo pointed to himself, an innocent foolery not effective this time. "I'm not flying that thing, nor going with you."

"He's got a point, Spectre." Both vanguards turned around towards the hangar's entrance. Spectre drew out Skyfall and aimed it at the entrance, but he lowered it.

Standing there, arms crossed and prepared, was the rest of Nero Bianco. Rez, Silver, and Lightning.

"I'm not just gonna stand by and worry where the hell you've been, Spectre," Lightning approached her twin brother, resting a hand on his shoulder. "We're family. And my responsibility as your older sister. You're not going alone."

"You heard every word of this, haven't you?"

"Down to the last breath."

 _Damn her and her tendency for eavesdropping…_ Spectre groaned, looking over at Cayde. He sent off angered daggers at the Hunter Vanguard, and he shrugged. _I swear, this is the last time I'm doing anything that deals with Eris. Thinks he can get away with this… Well, we'll see who has the last laugh when I force him to pay me Glimmer for both the loss of my spot in the Hall of Guardians and if Eris's ship gets destroyed._

The Exo Warlock approached the two Titans, handing the Sunbreaker a device. Just as soon as the device landed in Spectre's hand, it disappeared, adding the familiar weight of the anti-Taken armor prototype he was familiar to. He flexed his knuckles, remembering the articulation being just as good…before he busted it. "Here. It's not up to par with the anti-Taken armor everyone's using right now, but this has to do. Since your armor's already filled up with Exotic perks, I made a compact version for you."

"Wait, aren't you supposed to─"

"Stay out of action for at least another week? Like hell I'd skip out on this one!" Arc energy coursed through the Warlock's palm, turning into a ball of electricity. He brought it to eye level, illuminating the area of the hangar where they stood before crushing it like it was a ball of glass. "Firewing already started a retaliation strike without us on the Moon. Sucks to be them since we'll be launching one of the biggest retaliations in the war on the Taken's home turf."

Even though Rez didn't want to board the Dreadnaught, he gave a two-fingered salute towards his Fireteam leader. And if he thought he could just go back to the quarters and sleep, he's got another thing coming.

"Alright, here's the plan right now: Rez, Silver, swap your ships out for the ones Eris gave us when we slayed Crota. Light, you're going with me. Plain and simple."

"And why should I go with you on a ship that reeks like Hive?"

"Light, this is no time to be picky. As Cayde said, a ship with the scent of a Hive can get us past that weapon. Your _Draught of Nectar_ won't cut it. If you went in with that ship and the three of us with Hive ships, we're going to end up like the Awoken."

Silver, with the help of his Ghost, Alpha, began to swap out his _The Road Unraveled_ to the _Bane of Dark Gods_ gifted to him by Eris, custom built scout rifle and fusion rifle authorized by Ikora being prepared for battle. Rez also did the same thing, swapping his _Kondratyuk's Escape_ to a _Light in the Abyss_ and loading his Last Word and Stillpiercer.

However, just as the rest of Spectre's Fireteam was preparing for the mission, Spectre caught a figure in the corner of his eye. Standing next to Eris's ship was Vesper, hood down and raven hair gently flying about. The apparition caught note of the Titan's sight and warmly smiled, walking towards him.

 _"Good luck."_

He nodded in response. _I will._

 _"Give them hell. You're not known as the Hive Conquerer for nothing. So show them that you'll be their undoing."_

"Spectre?" Again, Vesper had vanished, bringing him back to reality. "How long do we have until we leave?"

The leader of Nero Bianco looked out the open hangar and towards the direction of the silvery moon, then back at the Warlock.

"Wheels up in five!"

 _ **-Destiny-**_

 _Rings of Saturn_

The trio of ships reached the end of their jumpspace, the familiar blue tunnel they all traversed to go beyond Earth leaving their sight as they approached the gas giant known as Saturn. Knowing the entire Fireteam, they had to have passed by Saturn while on their travels to the Reef, so they didn't have time to see the planet in its glory.

Just as soon as the ships lurched forward and brought back to normal space, they were taken aback by the entire planet and its ring. However, there was something that changed. And it stuck out like a sore thumb. Within the inner portion of the ring was a circle large enough to have been made by a detonated space bomb.

But that was no space bomb's doing.

And Fireteam Nero Bianco knew that.

"Unbelievable…"

"Oryx did _that_?" the Sunbreaker gently pushed the lever for the thrusters forward, checking the instruments within Eris's ship and monitoring the stealth drive. "By the Traveler…"

 _"Amen to that, Spectre."_ With the help of Primus, he was able to have a video feed with the Warlock and Hunter that came along with him. Their looks of disbelief and bewilderment were evident, even if they had their helmets on.

 _"All those Awoken… Wiped out like they were baby Ahamkara…"_

At a medium speed, the three ships advanced towards the epicenter of the problem, and as they got closer, they saw what was exactly in the middle of the hole in the ring. The Dreadnaught. And with it, the Taken King. The ships dove under the ring, using the debris and rocks as camouflage as they made their advance.

Primus hovered next to Spectre's shoulder, taking in the carnage and destruction that came with the annihilation of the Awoken fleet. **"It only took one blast from the Dreadnaught."**

 _"When you're through, it'll never fire again,"_ Cayde reminded the Fireteam, looking at the video feed that Primus was feeding to him. _"Just don't forget to plant the transmat link so the other Guardians can land. Not everybody's got stealth tech and a…ship that smells like Hive. Good luck, Nero Bianco."_

Cayde signed off from the comms, leaving the four-man Fireteam to proceed with their unorthodox mission. Just as the ships continued their venture to the Dreadnaught, the remains of the Awoken fleet─both their ships and pilots─came into view. Spectre became sickened at the sight of many good Awoken losing their lives in a single shot. They didn't deserve this, not even Mara. He held a great respect for the Queen of the Awoken, understanding why the Reef isolated themselves before the Tower was given the opportunity to hunt down the House of Wolves. Uldren, in his book, probably deserves such a death for being a royal pain in Nero Bianco's ass.

Spectre turned to face his Ghost, nodding. **"Activating stealth drive."**

Within the second they cleared out of the asteroid field that made up Saturn's ring, the trio of ships vanished in thin air, made effective with the help of the stealth drive. The Hive ship that was a mere hologram when Spectre and his team recovered from the Cabal base now towered over their ships, much like a human towering over an ant. For once, Spectre felt intimidated by the appearance of the ship. And the weapon right in front of them.

 **"I'm picking up fluctuations in the power conduit."**

 _"What? No way, I helped modify the tech to have the three of our ships be cloaked at the same time. Probably just Saturn's radio storms running interference."_ Rez noted, both Guardian at the pilot's seat and his Ghost looking at each other in some form of abstract horror. Rez…and modifying stealth tech.

However, the sound of an alarm rang out in Eris's own ship, followed by a red light coloring the area.

"What the─?!" Spectre looked over at the controls in his panel, checking to see what was going on.

 **"It's malfunctioning!"**

 _"Are you serious?! Did you break the damn thing!?"_

Just as quick as the stealth drive turned on, the cloaking device's effect lifted off of the three ships making their way to the Dreadnaught. _Great, now all of us are sitting ducks…_ Spectre slowed his commandeered ship down to a somewhat crawling speed, Rez and Silver's own ships following the lead ship.

Primus leaned next to Spectre's ear, making a Ghost's version of whispering to a Guardian's ear. **"You think they can see us?"**

"I just hope not…"

However, their hope of not being seen was sent off to the sun to burn. Four beams of light traveled across the surface of the Dreadnaught, making their way to a circular area right before them. Once those beams reached the circle, the entire thing lit up, the familiar, yet menacing color of the Taken dominant over it. And for that, Primus's question was answered.

 **"I think they can see us!"**

"Punch it! Now!" Lightning ordered. Not hesitating for a second, Spectre punched it, and so did Rez and Silver. The Hive ships kicked it into overdrive and started flying away from the weapon, but still in proximity to the Dreadnaught. The trio of ships veered to the right side of the weapon, where Spectre could see a form of entry point for them to land. The hand on the throttle started to tighten, Spectre hearing the faint sound of bones cracking under the pressure.

 _C'mon, c'mon…!_ Spectre kept the overdrive throttle down, praying to the Traveler that they'll make it in time. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the circle that the Dreadnaught used as a weapon start to fill and form into a ball. _Dammit, no!_

And it all ended with a bang.

The weapon had fired again, wiping out the entire Fireteam just as the Awoken fleet before them. The two _Bane of Dark Gods_ and single _Light in the Abyss_ disintegrated and exploded, joining the wreckage of the fleet in corpses or pieces. In a spectacular display of pieces and explosions, the Dreadnaught has proven its power against those weak and foolish enough to infiltrate it.

Or so they thought.

Four shapes appeared within the Trenchway of the Dreadnaught, two of them collapsing upon landing and the other two on their knees kneeling. All of them were breathing heavily, their Ghosts hovering in front of them to analyze the damage they took. Because if it weren't for Primus, Church, Artemis and Alpha, they would all be lost like the Queen and her fleet.

"Goddammit… I thought we were goners."

"Seconded, brother."

"Me three." Silver uttered, looking over at the Hunter and grinning, now that he beat the Nightstalker to the punch.

"Damn you, Silver."

 _"What happened? Everything all right?"_

 **"Why wouldn't we be, Cayde? We're just stuck here with no ship _and_ no transmat zone." ** The Ghost equivalent of Spectre bitterly retorted, shell angrily clicking and grinding at the near-death experience the eight had.

 _"Great. Told you my stealth drive would work."_

"Cayde, I swear when I get back, _I will kill you_." Growled the Ancient Vanguard leader, his fist starting to rage a flame orange.

 _"Yikes. Gotta go before Spectre goes full out dark side mode."_ Once again, the Hunter Vanguard signed off, leaving the four-man Fireteam back to the mission.

After spending a few minutes kneeling, Spectre got back up on his feet. He could feel his energy surging back to him like a storm, and that was all he needed. Lightning already got back on her feet, readying her Empress of the Abyss and pressing two fingers to one of her audio receptors, activating a sonar function in her helmet. A high-pitched sonar wave followed the activation, spreading from their location to within a ten mile radius. Her helmet relayed the information to Spectre's HUD, revealing a rough recreation of schematics to the Hive ship according to the range of her sonar pulse.

 _Great. Just great._ "Looks like we have our work cut out for us."


	9. I-IX: Light within the Darkness

**Prophet: Link, I don't think I want to continue deciphering the transmission anymore.**

 **Me: What? Why aren't you going to finish it?** _ **Everyone's**_ **dying to know what it is!**

 **Prophet: Take a look.**

 ***Prophet opens hologram***

 **[WE ARE THE CYPHERS.**

 **THE ABSOLUTION DIRECTIVE IS COMING.**

 **THE TOWER, THE CONSENSUS, AND THE VANGUARD WILL PAY FOR WHAT THEY DID TO US.**

 **15-14-5 15-6 21-19 19-20-1-14-4-19 1-13-15-14-7 20-8-1-20 '19-1-6-5 8-1-22-5-14' 25-15-21 3-1-12-12 20-8-5 3-9-20-25.**

 **WAITING.**

 **WATCHING ALL OF THOSE WHO CALL THEMSELVES 'WARRIORS OF THE LIGHT'.**

 **TO THE TOWER, THE CONSENSUS, THE VANGUARD, AND THE SPEAKER, WE CYPHERS DELIVER YOU A WARNING.**

 **WE WILL RISE AGAIN, STRONGER THAN WHEN YOU REMEMBER US.**

 **AND WHEN 25-15-21-18 CITY 1-14-4 TRAVELER IS 15-14 20-8-5 VERGE OF BEING TAKEN, EXPECT NO HELP FROM US.**

 **THIS IS THE PRICE YOU WILL ALL PAY FOR YOU DID WHAT YOU DID TO US!]**

 **Prophet: Now do you see, Link? Whoever they are, they're** _ **hellbent**_ **on revenge on the Tower, the Vanguard, the Speaker and the Consensus. Why didn't the Speaker tell us about something like this?! Clearly, these Cyphers have some history with the Vanguard and the Speaker! Hell, even the entirety of the Tower! And this is more than just a warning; it's a threat!**

 **Me: …You're right. As much as I want to hand this over to the Cryptarchs or the Speaker, I'm worried that these 'Cyphers' will hunt us down and kill us.**

 **Prophet: So what are you gonna do?**

 **Me: …What else will I do? Because once I finish the rest of the transmission, I'll have to find them myself. I don't care how long it will take me, because I will not stand by and watch as the Tower and the City become defenseless without some form of help! *Storms out***

 **Prophet: Link… Well, I guess I have to step in for the meantime. Seeing as Link had some problems with his laptop's battery not charging even though the cable's** _ **clearly**_ **plugged in and with his normal Iron Banner shenanigans/problems this month, I wouldn't blame him… As mentioned by my partner, this will be the second half of the 'Dreadnaught' mission and where it will end for Nero Bianco's mission. I hope I got it right pre-chapter banter, and we'll see you on the next one.**

 _ **Chapter IX: Light within the Darkness**_

* * *

"…And that's pretty much how we got here."

Spectre had finished weaving the whole story of how they got here, Rez now revived and avoiding to say anything that would send him off the edge or worse. Lightning had her arms crossed─as usual since she arrived at the Tower─as Silver had Alpha scan the area for anything that the Hive used to fool Nero Bianco into thinking they were at a dead end. So far, the Warlock and his Ghost didn't find anything. As for the Sunbreaker, he felt the gaze of the Hive Wizard across the chasm tear through the back of his head. Something about it wasn't right…

"At least your head wasn't damaged from the near-death trap we all went through," Lightning lowered her folded arms from her chest and took out Empress of the Abyss from her back, then aiming the scope on the Hive Wizard across from them. "And honestly, I'm sick of having this Wizard hover over the edge and taunting us!"

"Wait, no!"

Spectre's plea to stop his sister from doing something so reckless was silenced as an orb of violent purple light began to accumulate from the barrel of the SUROS ARI-styled auto rifle. If there was one thing that Spectre didn't know about her hand-built weapon, it was that it shared the similar properties of Reaper's Night Predator…in terms of being able to switch between kinetic, Void, Solar and Arc damage on the fly, as well as a select fire function, making it an actual MIDA Multi-Tool. Or in her eyes, a multi-weapon.

The orb on the auto rifle's barrel had grown to the size of his fist until she pulled the trigger. The Void-infused projectile flew from their side of the chasm and towards the Wizard. It split into many smaller versions of itself, to which it impaled themselves onto the form of the Hive enemy.

In the Wizard's eyes, these needle-like projectiles didn't even hurt, even though it tore through its shield. It began to laugh like a witch from the Pre-Golden Age era of legends, the cackle not even remotely close to one but still as terrifying.

Spectre facepalmed. Why did he just get the feeling of jumping off the chasm? "Seriously? That's it? Just sticking Void needles in a Wizard?"

"Not just any Void needles…" She walked over to the edge, a hand extended towards the Wizard. She snapped with her ring finger. As soon as she snapped her fingers, the needles made from the Void had glowed, glowing bright until the needles exploded. The Wizard gave a death screech as it exploded from the needles, disintegrating from existence as a black hole appeared behind it and pulled the body in.

Soon enough, the entire area shrouded itself in the presence of the Taken, and the blights appearing from both sides of the chasm. Taken Thrall emerged from the blights next to the Fireteam, and Taken Wizards and Vandals with Wire Rifles on the other.

Soon enough, Nero Bianco was on their feet, the four of them with their backs against each other as they were surrounded. They had their respective Exotic primaries at the ready, rifles at the aim towards the Wizards and Vandals and handcannons swapping from one Thrall to the next. None of them pulled the triggers yet, since they weren't given the order to fire.

"Just had to shoot that Wizard, did you?"

"That, coming from the Hive Conqueror and the Swarm Culler? I thought you knew which Wizards were normal and which ones would call for back-up."

"How would I know that Wizard would call on the Taken and not the Hive?!"

"Save the sibling argument for later, you two!" Silver calmly butted in, Tlaloc's barrel glowing with Arc Energy. "Right now, we gotta get this over with!"

"C'mon Spectre, give the goddamned order already!" Rez was getting impatient as the swarm of Taken Thrall began to advance on them.

"Rez, don't screw it up this time," Spectre reached for his knife on his hip, hand on the handle but not drawing it out yet. "Silver, Light, take out the Wizards and Vandals. Rez and I will handle the Thrall and blights."

"Right." The Exo aimed Tlaloc's scope at the Vandals while the female Titan focused her sights on the Wizards, hitting the select-fire switch and charging up another Void needle launch.

Rez spun the cylinder on the Last Word, then pointing the handcannon towards the ground. "Taking Thrall out should be easy! Bunch of wimps…"

"Now's the time to show me how much of a leader you became since I last saw you."

Spectre took in the situation one last time, feeling pretty sure of being able to take these Taken on, even though the rest of his Fireteam didn't have any hands-on experience with the Taken Vandals and Thrall. Then again, since when did they become surrounded by a bunch of Thrall? Aside from the Temple of Crota.

 _Inhale, count to four… Exhale, count to four…_ Taking a deep breath, he relaxed his nerves while his hand spun the cylinder of Skyfall. _Clickclickclickclickclickclick…_ The sound of the cylinder felt nothing more than a melody to him. A melody of hell about to break loose. Upon hearing the final click of the spinning cylinder, Spectre opened his eyes.

 _"Weapons free!"_

And the weapons let loose hell.

Lightning's Empress of the Abyss let loose two Void needler shots directed at the two Wizards, tearing through their Void shields and impaling the explosives within them. She need only to snap her fingers and they would all disintegrate before combusting to oblivion. As for the Vandals next to the Wizards, some of the crystal-like Void needles found their way impaled on them, even though their 'Wards of Dawn' protected them against the exploding Wizards. The Warlock aimed at the purple needles, and fired one round at each Vandal. The scout rifle's bullets, like the Void needlers, tore through the bubbles and struck the needles. Like the Wizards, the Vandals suffered an _explosive_ end to their lives.

As for the handcannon-slinging Titan and Hunter, both of them were scoring hits with their Last Word and Skyfall, wiping out the Thrall in rapid succession. While Rez may be using up the bullets in the magazine and using his knife when it was empty, Spectre was using his night-black handcannon as a club of sorts, dazing the Taken that were within breathing range for him and then stabbing them in the chest or head with his knife. Just as the Thrall were cleared out, and the only thing left were the blights, the rivals within Nero Bianco whipped out their JLB 47 and Ash Factory and fired the rockets at the blights across from them. Their Ghosts immediately put their rocket launchers back in their inventory, and returned their handcannons.

"Silver, Hawkmoon!"

The Warlock reached for the handcannon on the lower of his back and threw the weapon at his Fireteam leader. The Sunbreaker caught it and aimed both handcannons at the two blights before pulling the triggers. Within a matter of a second, both handcannons had fired their bonus damage rounds in the chamber, screaming through the air like Hive Boomers until they struck the blights, which combusted as they were torn back to the Taken realm.

Exhaling deeply, the Titan lowered the weapons to his side before spinning Hawkmoon in his hand and holding it by the barrel, handing it back to the weapon's owner. "How's that for leadership?"

"If there was anyone else with a plan like that, I'd say they were showing off by dual-wielding handcannons. But you? You did it without any flaws," under her helmet, Spectre's twin smiled at how far he's gone since the nine years they spent apart. "I'll say it must be because of your training with the new Guardians and each other."

"Just because you're an hour older than me doesn't mean you'll always be the more level-headed," the leader of Nero Bianco walked over to the edge of the chasm, kneeling down to get a good scope of the distance between both sides. "Okay, I'll go on ahead and see if I can find a way to make a path for us. Silver, I'm sending you data of the main points that the weapon focuses on to power itself. I want you, Lightning and Rez to deal with them."

"And how exactly are you gonna get across?" The Hunter questioned. His question was soon answered when his leader broke into a starting run and Lifted off the edge. Spectre only made it halfway until his Lift faded out on him, but not before a grappling hook launched from his right gauntlet attached itself on the other edge, reeling him in and he frontflipped as soon as he was inches away from the edge. "…Showoff."

 _"_ _What was that?! I didn't catch that!"_ Spectre called out from the other side of the chasm.

"YOU'RE A SHOWOFF!" Rez screamed from his side. It wasn't until he saw a red glint from where Spectre stood and a red laser marked on his forehead. "Oh, you son of a─"

 _Boom!_

The Hunter crumpled over and fell face-first over the edge once more, Church hovered where his partner stood and sighed. **"Guardian down…again."**

The Sunstriker sighed defeatingly. "Why am I not surprised?"

"That's Rez in a nutshell for you, Lightning." The Warlock answered.

 _ **-Destiny-**_

Just how long has he spent on this godforsaken Hive ship? It was like wherever he went, it all looked remotely the same. Spectre had that question pondering since he split up from his Fireteam and left them to deal with the weapon.

 **"Do you really think what we did back there was the right choice?"** Primus appeared from his pack for the first time since the Fireteam split up at the chasm, night-black shell continuing its normal clicking and whirring. **"Or is it something else? Something that you need to get off your mind after the nightmare you went through back at the Tower?"**

"Primus…" the Sunbreaker glanced down at his hand, the Solar energy faint as he closed it into a fist. "You know the answer to it all. As long as I live, this nightmare will never cease to haunt me. One where it will continue until my time comes."

 **"You have to stop sulking over it, Spectre,"** his Ghost argued, the blue eye in the middle of its shell glowing bright. **"It's not healthy to keep sulking on the past. You know it, I know it, and everyone in your position knows it! So snap out of it and focus on right now!"**

The duo found themselves in another section of the Dreadnaught, the ambiance more menacing that what he was used to back on the Moon. The area seemed to be about the same area as the Divide in the Cosmodrome, but with Hive architecture and a sort of shrine in the dead middle of it all. All around the shrine was a sickly green mist, and to him, it reminded him of the poison clouds the Wizards used against him and his fireteam.

Based on the sonar data his sister's transmitting and feeding to his HUD, and the ship's schematics he acquired from the World's Grave, he was able to determine that he was within an area on the ship known as the 'Hall of Souls'. So, now what?

"Well, what now?" joked the Sunbreaker, looking at the shrine from where he stood as his Ghost analyzed the area. "Because honestly, I don't think there's any way for me to find a way to make a way for me to regroup with them."

 **"You think?"** Primus's shell whirred as he analyzed the situation presented in front of them. **"And you did it on purpose, didn't you? Separating from the rest of the Fireteam, that is."**

"Guilty as charged," Spectre uttered, putting his hands up as if he was under arrest. "I just didn't want them to catch on that I may be starting to lose my mind to hallucinations of my dead lover."

 **"Great. Should've known you'd get back into the habit of isolating yourself from the rest of the Fireteam. Haven't seen you do it since the strike with Taniks."**

"Which was what, six months since then?"

 **"Five months and twenty-five days."**

"Whatever."

Before the Sunbreaker could get the chance to react further, the entire area began to rumble and shake, almost like an earthquake on the Dreadnaught. Even if Spectre could hold his balance, the violent rumbling of the ship caused him to lose his balance, and with the help of the rumbling increasing, he fell off the edge he stood on. Quickly, he launched his grappling hook at the ledge he fell off of, the claw-like hook grabbing hold of the structure and secured on.

His shoulder slammed against the wall next to him as a result from the sudden stop of his fall, shattering a bit of the armor. A sharp wave of pain coursed through his shoulder, and he cursed under his breath while his HUD in his Duskrender helmet warned him about the sudden vulnerability in his armor. Not only was the impact to his shoulder a painful one, but the fact that his _entire_ arm is extended to support the fact that it's more or less an anchor made it even worse as his arm started to feel like it was being slowly torn off its socket. One of his fingers reached for a tiny button within the palm of his armored glove, and the next instance, the magnetic-powered winch inside his gauntlet pulled him up.

He reached out for the ledge and pulled himself up and over, despite the Dreadnaught still violently shaking. His grappling hook unlatched from the edge and folded itself as the rest of the cable was winded up back into his wrist-mounted gear. He stood far from the edge to prevent himself from falling over the edge again, leaning against one of the walls that looks like a barricade, with a hand covering his shoulder as the rumbling continued. It went on for another twenty seconds until it subsided, the chaos fading away just as it swiftly came.

"Damn…" he lifted a hand from his shoulder, and saw a dark substance on the palm of his hand. "Primus, how bad is it?"

His Ghost began scanning the significant damage he took on his shoulder, the blue glow fading as soon as he finished. **"You're not gonna like this, but some of your armor's plate tore through the protective suit and some of the pieces are lodged in your flesh. Aside from that, you got a broken collarbone. And no doubt from the impact from both the wall and the shards of armor in your shoulder,"** he reported, and the Titan plucked out one of the visible shards sticking out of his shoulder, grunting as he pulled it out. **"Keep that nasty habit up, and you'll have to get a plate or screw to fix your collarbone. And the two of us know how much you hate having plates or screws inside you. Here, I'll administer some anesthetic until we get you back."**

Primus's shell summoned a needle from his shell and carefully injected the anesthetic into his shoulder, nullifying the pain until they get back to 20/20 or the medkit back on his ship. The Titan got back on his feet, moving his hand from his shoulder and shaking the blood off it. From the distance, he saw a swarm of Acolytes, Thrall, and Knights racing towards the exit on the other side.

"Primus, what got them riled up?"

 **"A hull breach in a section of the Dreadnaught. Breach isn't too far from here."**

"Wonderful, as if this mission didn't just become more interesting." And as if there wasn't enough going on, his helmet started ringing an incoming transmission. He tapped the button on his Duskrender.

 _"And just what do you think you're doing on the Dreadnaught, Titan?"_

"Nice to hear from you too, Ta'aan," Spectre sourly greeted the Bracus over comms, making his way across the Hall of Souls and alternating between Lift and wallrunning. "What the hell's going on? There's a hull breach right now!"

 _"That is none of your concern for the moment. All I ask of you right now is temporary cooperation."_

" _What_ temporary cooperation?"

 _"I ask of you to not attack me or the Cabal. Because shoot even one of my own, and I will make sure I will put an end to your streak in the Crucible."_

"Ta'aan…" Spectre stopped dead in his tracks and stood before the exit that the Hive used for the breach. Sitting close to the door was a piece of armor far too big to belong to the Hive. Based on the materials, it had to be…Cabal? "As much as I don't trust the Cabal that shoot at me or my team, I won't even bother trying to shoot at your squad. I sympathize your brothers in arms being Taken by Oryx, as well as everyone else that had watched their own kind become Taken."

 _"Even if the reason I asked for your cooperation involves the Skyburners?"_ the Cabal on the other end of the channel questioned. _"See to it that you do not shoot them. I will give you more details as soon as you are visible on my HUD."_

"And I'll see to it that I'll shoot the ones that might turn hostile on us, both my Fireteam and yours."

The comms channel clicked as Ta'aan signed off, leaving the black-bathed Titan back on the mission.

"SPECTRE!"

He turned around and saw the rest of his Fireteam headed towards him, and after what felt like days, Nero Bianco had finally regrouped. Again, he didn't keep track of the time. Based on the ashes and dirt on each of their armor, he concluded that the part of the mission he assigned the three of them went a little complicated than he planned.

"Is the weapon down?"

"One hundred…percent…offline." Rez was catching his breath, pointing it out towards the leader of the Ancient Vanguard.

"We ran into some Taken while we were taking care of them, but they weren't a problem." The Warlock added, dusting off his Heart of the Praxic Fire from the dust and ashes like he was a neat freak.

"Well, we got Ta'aan onboard."

Upon the mention of the name, Rez tensed up and froze in place horrifically. "Oh no, not that brute of a Bracus! _He's_ here?!"

"C'mon, we gotta head to the breach and give him a hand!"

 _ **-Destiny-**_

Soon enough, Nero Bianco arrived at the breach site. Already, they could see the hole that _something_ made in the hull of the Dreadnaught, revealing the gas giant that the Fireteam was currently in close proximity to. Luckily, their helmets detected that there was no more oxygen in the area due to the hull breach and began feeding the oxygen to them through their armor. And smackdab into what caused the hole in the Hive ship's hull was directly in front of them to their right.

 **"A Cabal ship! Skyburners colors!"** Alpha declared, immediately spotting the Cabal ship that crash landed─and undoubtedly caused the hull breach. From what the Fireteam could see from their vantage point, the Skyburners and Hive were waging war against each other, Slug Rifles and Shredders flying all over the place. There were also Ogres and Colossi in the fray, as well as Knights with Hive Boomers and Centurions with Projection Rifles.

Avoiding being caught, the Fireteam took cover behind some debris.

"Why the hell are the Cabal here?!" Spectre's Fireteam practically asked in unison, obviously knowing that Spectre knew something.

"Do I look like I know?! Anyway, our priority is to get the Skyburners out of here and deal with the Hive," once more, Spectre started formulating one of his master plans, glancing over his cover to have a quick scout. His HUD relayed information sent by the Bracus via coded dispatch (typical of him), and it was clear on what he wants with the cooperation. "If there's any Cabal that shoot at us with a hostile intent, you know the drill. Shoot back. We're gonna head for that outcrop on the west of our position, near the hull breach. I'll plant the drop beacon, and we're sending in the calvary."

"Right," the Hunter and Warlock of the Fireteam understood the order, followed by the Sunstriker. Soon enough, Silver faced his leader. "So how are we gonna do this, Spectre?"

"Rez, Silver, you guys still got the 'Party Crashers'?"

Under their helmets, the Exo and human grinned. "Who said we didn't bring them?"

"Hate to do this to our enemies, but at least their fun will be ruined by us!"

Spectre turned his head to face his Ghost hovering over his shoulder. "Primus…" Immediately, the Ghost understood the intent and called out a heavy weapon from his inventory. Church and Alpha followed Primus's example and transmatted the same weapon from their respective Guardians' inventories.

Lightning watched as what transmatted in their hands were rocket launchers. But not just any rocket launchers. The Hunter, Titan, and Warlock had the exact same rocket launcher, with a white exterior and many gold adornments that made it quite majestic, especially with the wolf's head on the front of the rocket launcher's loading chamber. She knew what weapon would fit the description. One rocket launcher so feared by many that it made a lot of Guardians begin their search for the devastatingly powerful weapon.

Gjallarhorn.

After they loaded their weapons, they stood from cover and rested them on their shoulders, scopes laid before their eyes. Where Silver and Rez placed them over their right shoulders, Spectre put his on his left shoulder, interfacing his rocket launcher's scope to his HUD to compensate for his broken collarbone.

"Knock knock."

"Who's there?" As if the Hunter and Warlock's response to the classic joke was a cue, the trio pulled the triggers on their weapons. The rockets were let out of their cells, the payloads screaming like Hive Boomers as they all tracked their own targets. As soon as they all struck Knights and Ogres─and unfortunately, swarms of Acolytes and Wizards─, the rockets exploded within proximity, and the Wolfpack Rounds finished off the Hive that didn't die from the blast.

However, some survivors redirected their attention from the Cabal towards the Guardians that took out their heavy hitting soldiers. Hissing and howling, they practically called for the rest of the Hive in the area to go after the Guardians.

"Well, now it's a party." Silver joked, using the sling he made for Gjallarhorn and letting it rest against his shoulder. From their vantage point, they could see a multitude of Thrall rushing their way towards them.

Primus still hovered over his partner's shoulder while he slung the weapon much like the Warlock. **"Music?"**

"Hmm… Something worth being under 'kicking the enemy's ass, with four Guardians standing up against an entire army'." His Ghost took in the request and skimmed through his music until he found it; 'Gotta Get the Cash'. Just as soon as the song started dropping the beat, the Fireteam slid down the slope and started scoring kills with their respective Exotics, the three main members of Nero Bianco scoring precision kills with their handcannons and scout rifle while the Sunstriker fired off tight, pulse rifle-like bursts from her auto rifle before breaking off from the rest of the Fireteam and unleashing her Infernal Punishment on an unsuspecting group of Hive attempting to flank them.

Just as the rest of Nero Bianco was reaching the outcrop, he spotted a red glint among one of the places that would be used as a sniping nest before his modified IFF identified the sniper. Jessica, a Cabal Psion Flayer from Triton's Twilight House. They had a few run-ins before, and her presence on the Dreadnaught meant that she was here with Ta'aan.

"Nice to run into you here of all places, Jessica." The leader of the Fireteam and the Ancient Vanguard greeted the Psion Huntress of Twilight House, the four of them shooting back at the Hive and the occasional Cabal that tried to shoot at them.

"Ta'aan brought me along to back him up. Personally, I had better chances of helping out a certain Hunter when their guard was down than watching Ta'aan's flank." The Psion Flayer responded, quickly looking through the scope and firing off a round out of her anti-materiel rifle.

" _That_ was _you_ who tried to rip a hole out of me?!" following the Cabal Huntress's lead, he quickly peeked through his Stillpiercer's scope and fired off a skip round, the round tearing through a Knight's skull and ricocheting off to strike nearby Acolytes in the head. "I had that Acolyte until you had to kill it!"

Under her helmet, she grinned evilly. "Really? Because from where I was standing, you looked like a complete idiot who just suffered from a flashbang grenade and a seizure attack at the same time while crossing the street until a high speed Interceptor rams into you." As if that was the last straw─and it was for the Nightstalker─, he screamed at the top of his lungs frustratingly and threw down his Stillpiercer, clutching at his hood and taking fistfuls in his fists while stomping his foot repeatedly like a madman.

"Try being kicked in the gut and thrown over the edge into the abyss, only to be revived and shot in the goddamned head by Spectre's modified Antinomy XVI with a high caliber round! And not within thirty seconds, I'll add!"

"Are you done?" Spectre asked, kicking the sniper rifle back towards Rez's feet and planted the transmat beacon, the familiar green glow from the device blinking now that it was operational. In the nick of time, Lightning regrouped with the rest of the retaliation strike team, helping them hold off the army of Hive while Ta'aan and his Shadow Stormers evacuated the Skyburners that willingly came with them.

 **"Transmat link is active! Our ships are inbound, and so is back-up!"**

Soon enough, the transmat zone that Spectre had set up was filled with the most unlikely of back up. Fireteams Dragon, Death, and Sparta. _Of course they'd come running to the Dreadnaught for the action, as if the Moon was enough to satisfy them all._ Spectre groaned in his head. With Dragon and Death, he can personally deal with, but Sparta? Nero Bianco and Sparta are enemies, rivals even to say. He has problems with Adam, and Adam just plain despises him for no apparent reason. The four Fireteams and Cabal forces focused fire at the Hive, wiping them out, but more of them just keep coming out of the dark corners of the Dreadnaught.

 _"_ ─ _on?! Spectre, are you there?!"_ A voice called out in the Sunbreaker's ears, causing him to wince a bit and press two fingers against his audio receptor.

"You didn't have to yell in my ear like that, Tri! I can hear you loud and clear now!"

 _"Sorry, there were some complications in trying to break through the radio interference up here. Cayde's been trying to contact you, but he kept telling me that either your comms were off or that some interference was in play."_

"Patch him in." Spectre muttered, teeth grinding against each other as Triton was patching the Hunter Vanguard to his comms.

 _"Hey Zavala! Wanna know what a transmat zone on the Dreadnaught looks like?"_

 _"You landed Nero Bianco on the Dreadnaught without authorization?!"_ The outraged tone of Spectre's superior came piercing through his ears, knowing that he just went through a miniature version of the earful he had after he got Cayde's stealth drive.

 _"Oh right! Can I have authorization?"_

Just as another Harvester appeared to take the Skyburners that are evacuating away, the Skyburners sent out a Goliath tank from the crashed ship, the hull damaged and the rear port anti-grav thruster sparking like crazy. However, what was odd about this Goliath and the others that Nero Bianco faced before it was that it seemed heavily plated and a multitude of weaponry to match, almost as if…

 _Boom!_

The Harvester that was evacuating the wounded Skyburners exploded into a million pieces, and the Cabal within the ship all decimated to ashes within a single plasma launcher shot and bombardment of missiles. The retaliation strike made a run for cover as the husk of the Harvester was about to crush them all, blocking the transmat zone and preventing anymore reinforcements from reaching the area.

 _"We'll discuss it later. Spectre, Dmitri, and Adam: take care of that tank, or the transmat zone won't matter!"_ The comms between Zavala and Spectre were cut as another plasma launcher strike was fired, taking out a small portion of the Shadow Stormers assigned with helping the Skyburners.

"Some plan you have right now, huh, Spectre?" Dragon looked at the Ancient Vanguard leader, who was returning fire blindly with Skyfall.

"Tell me something I don't know, like how those two new recruits of yours isn't doing jack right now!" Spectre fired the last round in his handcannon, forcing him to eject the spent magazine cylinder and load in a new one. "Then again, I don't suppose you know how to deal with this much armor on a Goliath!"

"It's the first I've heard of it!"

"Dammit…!" another plasma launcher strike, this time close to the leaders of Nero Bianco and Dragon. "Ta'aan! That Goliath's going hostile on us!"

 _"You are not to engage that Goliath! They need repairs!"_

"Then explain why it's shooting at _us_!" on the other end of the comms, the Bracus began to say something in the Cabal language like he was muttering under his breath. "Ta'aan, as much as I don't want to cause more damage to the Skyburners, we need to get rid of that Goliath before it gets rid of us!"

 _"_ … _Fine. You and the other Fireteams are cleared to eliminate the Goliath. Just know that loss will have my brothers' blood on your hands."_

"I understand." Again, the comms between the Bracus and the Sunbreaker were cut off, and the Titan faced his Ghost. "Primus, tell Alpha, Artemis and Church to have our ships wait outside the Dreadnaught!"

 **"Already told them since that tank started shooting at the Harvester and us!"**

 _Boom!_

Another plasma strike, but instead of hiding behind the rubble, the two leaders moved to another and started shooting at the Goliath with their machine guns. However, the rounds fired from Objection IV and Dragon's customized machine gun did little effect on the Goliath, the rounds bouncing off the armored plating like it was nothing. Rez and Silver brought out their Gjallarhorns and fired at the Goliath, only for the rockets to be diverted from course just as soon as the rockets were within close proximity.

"Dammit, heavy weapons are useless!" the Sunbreaker unloaded the last bullet in the magazine, ducking behind cover to reload. "What's it gonna take to take this guy out?!"

 _"You could've nicely asked, Spectre."_

"Lightning, what the hell do you think you're saying?!"

His question was soon answered when he caught the shrill sound of rapid-firing machine guns and the whistle of rockets being fired. Thanks to the sound of those weapons being fired, his direction was redirected and watched as the crashed Harvester that blocked the transmat zone was blown to pieces by a barrage of rockets and machine guns. From right outside the hole in the Dreadnaught's hull was Lightning's _Draught of Nectar_ , a high-powered searchlight lighting up the area while the ship's weapons and arsenal popped out of multiple places and become encased in heavy armor plating.

"Who the hell's flying your ship, sis?!"

 _"Autopilot's doing the work. Don't worry, I programmed it to attack on my command when I tell Artemis to. Right now, I ordered it to attack the Goliath."_

The _Draught of Nectar_ entered the hull breach and started firing its machine guns and turrets at the heavily-armored Cabal tank, some of the rear-mounted turrets near the thrusters diverting their fire from the Goliath and focused on the Hive that tried to take out its thrusters. Some of the Hive were successful to landing hits on the ship, but they were swatted off like it was nothing. Thanks to having some heavy artillery deal with the Cabal's own heavy artillery, the Guardians got out of their hiding spots and focused on the Hive that keep on coming in floods of many hundreds coming in. After the Goliath had enough of being shot at, it locked on the black and silver ship and fired its rockets in a furious storm.

The armed ship, in a retaliation strike to the Goliath launching rockets at it, fired its own micro-rockets and did a barrel roll to the right. After the _Draught of Nectar_ fired the rockets, they tracked after the larger rockets and within a swarm, the rockets collided with each other, making a spectacular display of aerial explosions and creating a smoke screen between the ship and the Goliath.

"Some arsenal your sister has, huh, Spectre?" Dmitri kidded, firing off his flamethrower at the incoming Hive headed his and Spectre's way. While the leader of Dragon was burning the Hive to an overdone crisp, Spectre brought out his Ironwreath-D and held down the sidearm's trigger, the weapon firing a spray of skip rounds that ricocheted off the walls and the skulls of the unfortunate Hive he aimed at and utilizing his knife for the Hive that were too close for him to shoot at.

"Trust me, I haven't seen her for nine years, and she shows up just yesterday with a weaponized ship and gear from the Trials of Osiris. Some sibling reunion."

Lightning's ship began to spin up the chaingun mounted on the nose until a large Shadowshot arrow tore through the cloud of smoke, striking the Goliath tank and preventing it from moving. Following the attack was four more Shadowshots, each of them pinning the antigrav thrusters and preventing them from moving. Emerging from the smoke was a single Huntress with a white cloak and a wolf pattern emblazed on it, who joined up with the leaders of Nero Bianco and Dragon.

"What the hell are you doing here, Reaper?!"

"What, do you think I had no idea of your plans? Like I said when we got the stealth drive; I'm bored of sticking around waiting for the next crisis to happen," the Bladedancer nocked in another arrow and fired at the Hive attempting to flank the two leaders, all of them exploding in a single shot. "If you asked, I followed your ships here."

"Do you even know how risky this is?!"

"I live for the thrill of the hunt, and I already missed out on the retaliation strike on the moon! I'm not letting this opportunity slip by me!"

"Save the lovers' quarrel for later, you two!"

Thanks to Reaper's knack of using Shadowshot arrows from Night Predator, Lightning's ship had finished charging up the chaingun and unleashed a torrent of high caliber rounds infused with Solar, Arc, and Void energy. Within a reasonable volley of the rounds, the armor on the Goliath cracked apart, and just as the Cabal tank was about to fire its plasma launcher, the _Draught of Nectar_ fired its micro-rockets at the charging weapon. Because of their small size, they immediately blocked the ports to the weapon, and with the fact that the weapon was charging, it exploded, destroying its main form of attack. Part of the tank was eliminated, but not down for the count yet.

 _"You remember what we used to say back then, Spectre?"_ Lightning questioned her twin, to which he smirked under the helmet and responded with a yes.

"Checkmate."

 _"Checkmate."_

Even if the chaingun was overheated for the meantime, there was only one form of weaponry on Lightning's ship that was still active. The rocket launch pods near the cockpit and thrusters opened up, and fired off the last of the rockets the ship had in a furious storm. Both micro-rockets and cluster bomb missiles fired from the _Draught of Nectar_ struck the Goliath tank, the barrage of rockets acting as a two-way cracker. And we quote a certain tiny robot, 'first we crack the shell, then we break the nuts inside!'.

All of the cluster bomb rockets struck the chassis of the tank at the same time, exploding on contact and letting out its explosive payload. The payload delivered the final blow, causing the tank to explode internally until it finally erupted into a ball of flames.

In a matter of a chain reaction that followed the destruction of the Goliath tank, the Hive that surrounded the hull breach all disintegrated back into the dark pits of the Dreadnaught, leaving the area and the fight quickly. As for the Cabal that were against being evacuated, they warped back into safety within their crashed ship as the Shadow Stormers and the Fireteams all erupted in victory cries, massing around the area where the Goliath fell.

But for the leader of Nero Bianco, his victory was cut short when his comms channel started ringing. He holstered his custom handcannon and pressed his fingers against the audio receptor.

 _"Spectre… Cayde just debriefed us on your…unorthodox mission. Your victory, no matter the method─is a Vanguard victory. You have our thanks."_

"So does this mean I won't have to hear an earful when I get back?"

 _"No, it does not, Spectre."_

 _"Everybody loves a bad idea when it works,"_ the Hunter Vanguard came in on the comms channel, the Sunbreaker tightening his fist at the mere sound of his Exo voice.

"You're lucky, Cayde. At least you won't have to pay me 500000 Glimmer when I get back. In fact, you'll be paying me _20000_ for Eris's ship."

 _"_ … _Yeah. Now, excuse me, Spectre, I have to go have a…uncomfortable conversation with Eris about…her ship. Just get home safe."_

The comms shut off in his Duskrender, and Spectre turned around to see the Harvesters and the ships of the other Guardians standing by outside the hull breach. Lightning was nowhere in sight, but her _Draught of Nectar_ had hid the artillery and proceeded to fly outside of the battle zone and back outside. One by one, the rest of the Fireteams were transmatting back to their ships outside the hull breach until it was Spectre and Primus left. If there was one thing that Spectre was known for missions like this, he would be the last one to leave to make sure no one's left behind.

 _No one's left. Good._ "Primus, get us out of─" _Whump!_

A force as though another Titan shoulder-charged him from behind, forcing Spectre to collapse on the ground back-first. With barely any time to react after rolling, a hand reached out for his throat and he started choking. Immediately, his hands were clawing at the hands around his neck as he was lifted from off the ground. _What the hell─?! Why the hell is─!?_

As much as he wanted to find out who's ambushing him, his Duskrender's helmet started blaring alerts all over the damned HUD, making it impossible to see what was going on without having a shadow of what he sees. Just as the grip tightened around his neck, his oxygen levels was being cut off, and the feeling of space was starting to suffocate him. Spectre let one of his hands let go from his attacker's wrists and started throwing wild Solar-fused punches. However, all of it was in vain after the third punch when the assailant stopped the punch and started crushing his fist and wrist with a compactor-like force. Spectre cried out in pain, but the slowly approaching lack of oxygen effectively lowered the sound to a mere pain-driven groan.

"Primus… _go_!" The Sunbreaker pleaded, coughing up blood in his helmet as the vacuum of space was slowly suffocating him.

 **[** _ **No! I'm not leaving you behind, Spectre!**_ **]**

 _Just_ go _!_ NOW!

Even though the Ghost was hiding in his pack, he simply would refuse to leave Spectre's side. But this was one of those situations where it would mean death for the both of them if Primus stuck around. So, reluctantly, Spectre's Ghost transmatted himself into the custom _Fatal Vision_ hovering above the wreckage of the Goliath tank. From his fading sense of hearing, he could tell that his ship turned around and fled the hull breach on the Dreadnaught, leaving him behind.

 _"Think…so tough? Pathetic… This…from a renowned…? What a load of…"_ Spectre heard from his fading hearing until he was thrown into the ground once more, sliding until he stopped at a piece of Hive architecture that was destroyed when the Cabal ship crashed. For some reason, he felt a sinister aura around the area, and he knew what was going on around him. It was the presence of the Taken.

His strength was being sapped away, and he knew it all along. He ran the risk when he told Primus to leave him behind, and the Light within him was being smothered by the Taken's presence. Weakly, he struggled to get back on his feet, but collapsed against the debris. To make matters worse, the vacuum of space already sapped half of his breathing capacity, leaving his breathing shallow and short of breath.

And before he knew it, he felt his head being grabbed by his assailant and jerked forward. What happened next was all in a blur. Just as quickly as his head was pulled forward, his head was thrown backwards. A loud symphony of plasteel and electronics within his helmet was released as an ear-screeching song of destruction that tore through his ringing ears, and his skull scrunched against his own helmet. He felt zero gravity through a crack in his helmet, and he knew that his helmet being smashed against the Hive architecture debris wasn't the only problem going on.

 _Dam…mit… Oxygen chip…disconn…ected… Can't… Reconnect…_

Spectre's oxygen, despite his best efforts to conserve whatever was in his helmet without the chip connecting his helmet to his internal oxygen tank, was all depleted.

And he succumbed to the darkness.


	10. I-X: Out with the Light

_**Chapter X: Out with the Light…**_

* * *

 _Damn it!_

Bang!

 _Damn it, damn it!_

Bang, bang! Scruuunch…!

 _Damn it all to hell! How could I have been so careless?!_

Out in a far part of the ridiculously huge hangar of the Cabal warship known as the _Hades' Soul_ , a Titan bathed in silver, gold and black was throwing a fit. With each throw of her every fist, parts for ships both Cabal and for Guardians were flying, making quite a mess until she punched the support that suspended her heavily armed and armored _Draught of Nectar_ from the ground while mechanical arms was repairing the damage it took, all thanks to Artemis taking control of the repair arms. Lightning's helmet was off, and clearly, her face was a mix of anger and distress. There was even signs of her about to break into tears, but they were suppressed back due to her changed self.

She failed. Let her own arrogance take the best of her. For being the first to enter her ship. For letting her 'little' brother be _captured_ by an unknown assailant that was either Hive or Taken. She screamed angrily as she took her helmet and chucked it against the support beam. The helmet didn't shatter to pieces on impact, as her Ghost ducked before it hit her and lessened the velocity of the thrown piece of armor. For the first time in nine years fighting under the Queen by the order of the Cyphers, she slipped up. A screw up that costed more than a mere defeat. Even if she had a reputation of soloing the Trials on her own, that only hid what many would assume to be a weakness.

A fear of failing to protect Spectre.

 _"Lightning!" Her red and black-colored twin brother came racing towards her body, picking her up and resting her head against his lap. "C'mon sis, don't die on me!"_

 _The twin of Spectre only coughed out blood in her helmet in response, and her vision was turning black as she covered her wound with one of her hands._

 _However, as one Lightning was lying on the ground bleeding, another was a ghost in this memory. The present-day Lightning stood at the sidelines, bowing her head in shame at recollecting the first time she failed to protect him and paid the price for it. The Cyphers sent her and her brother after some important cargo down in the ruins of Old Chicago, and it was a case when the Cyphers would send the two of them on a mission; rarely did Vesper join the missions. And this was a time when the Cyphers prohibited them from having Primus and Artemis revive or heal them, and that meant life or death, as well as making their choices in the field count. All for a survival endurance test so that they could survive without their Ghosts. It was protocol of sorts when it came to the Cyphers._

 _Lightning and Spectre were able to extract the cargo, but they were ambushed by the Fallen in the region. They fended off their attackers, but Lightning suffered a near-fatal wound when defending her brother from a Vandal's Shock Blades. She took the stabs in her shoulder and chest, but she was fortunate enough that the blade that went through her chest didn't stab deep enough to actually kill her. If she didn't leap in at the last second, then she would be the only one of the twins still alive today._

 _Ever since she put her life on Spectre's─and anyone else she cares for─own, she swore that she would protect them at all costs._

"How could I fail my own promise? What good am I if I can't goddamned protect him?!" she slumped against the support beam with the control panel, her helmet in one hand and head against the structure. "First I couldn't protect Mara, now it's my own brother? Some Titan I turned out to be…" Lightning wanted to cry, but her body wouldn't allow it to happen. Her lightning blue eyes clearly watered upon closer inspection, but they remained there, unable to be free.

Weakness. It was a foreign concept to her, despite having a fear. The only major time she showed it was her failure to get the Queen out of the rings of Saturn before the Dreadnaught's weapon wiped out her and the Awoken fleet. And since she was the only survivor of the attack, and now she and Petra are going to pay the price of mourning. Mourning a close companion and their Grace in a way just like Spectre.

 **"Light…"** Artemis stopped what she was doing on the control panel and hovered over to the Sunstriker. **"You can't blame yourself. I don't want to offend him, but it** _ **was**_ **Spectre's choice to be the last one to leave. Plus, everyone was exhausted after that fight. It was the perfect moment for the enemy to ambush us."**

"I almost lost my own life the first time I protected him, and now I didn't even try to do it!"

 **"Artemis is right, Lightning,"** the traumatized Primus appeared next to Artemis, shell whirring like he was saddened. **"Spectre always did that ever since he started being in a Fireteam with Rez and Silver. It's just in his nature ever since he lost Vesper. He doesn't want to lose anyone, be it a friend or someone he loves."**

The Titan and the two Ghosts soon heard the sound of boots clacking against the metal that made up the floor of the hangar, and the three turned their direction towards the entrance of their docking station. Reaper soon came into view, her helmet off of her head but her hood was still on and her own Ghost hovering next to her. Just like the older twin of Spectre, she was clearly in despair, but her face barely showed any sign of such emotion. The Huntress looked down at the Titan, legs close to her chestplate and her helmet sitting next to her as the golden visor stared at the black and silvery-gray colored _Fatal Vision_ suspended in the dock next to the _Draught of Nectar_.

The Huntress, on the other hand, was feeling unnerved. She heard of how hostile Lightning could be, based on how she beat up Rez and how she already hated Adam from Fireteam Sparta because he was constantly picking on the partnerless Primus.

 _ **"Heeeeelp!"**_ _The Ghost of the captured Spectre cried out, constantly dodging bullets fired from Adam's FWC handcannon just as soon as Fireteam Nero Bianco turned their backs after he told them that Spectre was captured._

 _"Dammit, stay still, you little prick of a Ghost!" Adam growled, trying to get a bead on the black-colored Ghost that was running away from him. Whether or not he was able to get a lock on him, he always missed his shots. And not even once did he feel humiliated or like a fool because of a damned Ghost!_

 _"HEY!"_

 _Just as Adam fired the last round in his handcannon and missed, he growled ferociously and turned towards the entrance of the shooting range. Standing there was a very pissed off Lightning, her Arcburn Strike sparking with both Solar and Arc energy like a forest fire and storm combined. She stomped towards the panicking Primus and took him in her hand like the Ghost was a child of hers._

 _"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Lightning barked, her own Ghost appearing and comforting the traumatized and quivering Primus. All she got in response was a scoff from the over-equipped Titan._

 _"What do_ you _think you're doing with_ my _prey?" Adam already loaded his handcannon and aimed it at Spectre's sister, teeth grinding under his helmet. "Get lost, and while you're at it, give me back that Ghost. I have some unfinished business with him."_

 _"Like hell I'd give back Primus! You have no right to torture Spectre's Ghost!"_

 _"Under_ whose _orders are you obeying?! Spectre's not here, and what better way to keep that son of a bitch dead is to make sure that his Ghost is destroyed!"_

 _Snapped._

 _For the first time since she arrived in the Tower, not once has she heard of anyone holding a grudge against her brother. And this asshole just wanted him dead! She may not know the grudge between Adam and Spectre, but already, he did something that he'll regret. Because quite frankly, he caused a small thing within Lightning's mental state to snap. Snap like a twig in your hands. Or better yet, like glass that shattered on the ground. Her face darkened, and if it weren't for her self-control, she would've gave in to extreme hatred._

 _Lightning's fist, still sparking with Solar and Arc energy, raged out of control while her blood boiled. In an instant, she dashed towards the Titan, whom was spooked and started firing rounds from the FWC handcannon. With each shot aimed at her, she dodged them at the last second, making Adam seriously pissed off since she was repeating what Primus did a few minutes ago. Within a few inches from Adam, her Solar-Arc combined fist already went beyond her maximum limit and in one swift move, she delivered a devastating left hook. The Spartan was sent flying as a result of the punch, the left side of his Skullfort having a portion of it melted off from the Solar damage._

 _Adam's armored body crashed against the wall, the blunt trauma of his head hitting the wall knocking him out…for the time being. Even if his Feedback Fence was active at all times, it was no use. Lightning's armor, despite being Legendary grade, negated the counterattack thanks to the shared talent of implementing Exotic grade perks to Legendary gear._

 _"Why don't you do me a favor and stay down?" Lightning lessened her tension after sending such a punch, breathing returning to normal as she blew some of her locks away from her eyes._

She took a deep breath and took her hood down, stepping into the dock where Lightning and the two Ghosts were. "Hey, you're Spectre's sister, right?"

Lightning looked up at the Bladedancer, then back down at the ground. "You're Reaper, aren't you?"

"Yeah, that's me."

"What do you want? Come to add more salt in my wound?"

Reaper shook her head. "Do you mind if I sit next to you?"

"There's other places to sit, you know. Why would you want to sit here of all places?" muttered the Sunstriker, occasionally glancing back at the Huntress and back at her hands. However, Reaper wasn't going to leave and decided to sit next to the Titan anyway, mimicking the Sunstriker's pose. "…Fine. Suit yourself."

"I know how much pain you're in, and I just want to help." Reaper rested her arms on her bent knees, looking up at the docked _Fatal Vision_. A tiny spark of envy was inside Reaper, since a ship that was amazingly agile and durable belongs to one of the Tower's best Titans. In fact, it made her _Devils' Due BKR_ look like a toy compared to _Fatal Vision_. She always wanted to own such a ship, but she may never get that chance.

"How the hell could you know how much pain I'm in?"

The Huntress looked at Spectre's twin sister, biting her tongue for a brief moment. "Not many people believe me, but I'm an aura reader. I could just tell by being in someone's presence." The Bladedancer caught the sound of a disbelieving scoff from the Titan. Again, another disbeliever of the Huntress's own ability.

"If you're really an aura reader, then what's the color of my aura right now?" Lightning turned her head to see Reaper's face frown, her previous demeanor replaced in an instant.

"…All I see is black. Black and gray. A lot of things are troubling you, and not just Spectre's capture. You blame yourself for many things, don't you?"

"…You're right, Reaper. I blame myself for a lot of things," she stared down into her hands, her blue eyes darker than before. In her hands was a crystal in the shape of a rose without its stem, colored black and white that both colors took vertical halves of the crystal in an iridescent spectrum. "Leaving my brother alone for nine years when he needed me the most and before his capture, my own failure to get the Queen out of the blast radius of the weapon. I was never perfect. People thought of me as hell's angel because I took on the Trials alone and made it to the Lighthouse multiple times, but really, I was fueled by my own adrenaline and my own combat experience."

"Believe it or not, but when I read your brother's aura, it only remained a constant black. Even though I only knew him for a week."

"Yet you two went on a date. If I'm wrong, aren't you aura readers supposed to _not_ go out with anyone with a negative aura?"

"I wanted to help him open up a bit! His aura's far beyond anything I've read before!" Objected Reaper, turning away to hide a flushed face. "I know how good of a leader he is and a role model to many new Guardians, but aura readers like myself can see through the veil he's using."

"Reaper, believe it or not, but there's a good reason why Spectre doesn't open up much." Lightning paused, pondering on whether or not to tell Reaper that her sister had a lover before. In the end, she decided against it. "He suffered far more than I did. And not because of me leaving him alone."

"It's something else, isn't it?" Reaper caught on, and Lightning nodded. "What is it? Because I'm pretty sure I can─"

"Not now." Lightning suddenly got back on her feet, startling the Bladedancer and making her way out of the hangar where her _Draught of Nectar_ was docked. Just as she was about to turn the corner, she stopped, putting a fist to the wall and looked back at Reaper. A look of confusion was clear in her eyes, practically begging to know more. "I know how much you want to help me and Spectre. I completely understand that desire. But know that there are battles that my brother and I face with every waking moment we breathe. You're trying to step into something that goes beyond a simple talk, so I will say this now: _stay out of it_. Right now, it's his battle he's fighting, and he doesn't need help. So when the time comes that he'll need help from someone like you, go ahead and help him. But for now, stay out of his own fights."

Lightning walked away from the hangar, Artemis and Primus in tow. Just as she walked down the large hangar within _Hades' Soul_ , her right eye was covered by some of her own locks, mimicking her brother's current appearance. She avoided the gaze of Fireteam Sparta as she passed by their hangar, her brother's customized handcannon in her possession as she fired a round in Adam's direction without glancing at him. Some of the members of the other Fireteams that were a part of the retaliation strike passed by her, but didn't say a word since they thought she was still distressed about hearing Spectre being captured by the Taken King's forces.

But that wasn't the case. Within the dark veil that was her grief and distress, her mind began to plan. Plan and plot, plan and plot. The cogs of planning awoke from their rusted slumber, clicking against each other. Plan and plot what, you may ask? Well, the answer is just as simple.

She would get Spectre out of the Dreadnaught.

With or without help.

* * *

It will never stop.

All this pain…

All this suffering…

It's a cycle that will never end.

Even in this darkness, all he could do was suffer. Take the pain. In the darkness of a cell within the Asylum on the Dreadnaught, he was already paying the price for letting his guard down. For being the last one to leave. For being _too slow_ to react to an ambush. How pathetic. The Hive Conqueror, captured by the enemy that should fear him and his name. And his torturer was right all along. He already fell to a defeatist state, but not broken.

In the dim glow of a source of light in the cell, Spectre was suspended from the ceiling of the cell, a chain made out of Hive materials suspending him from the ceiling. Add the fact that the anesthetic Primus administered earlier already wore off, and his shoulders were already numb from the constant pain of his broken collarbone. His face became sickly pale, the scar from his early days reopened and bleeding profusely, bruises scattered all over his face and the splatter of his own blood scattered across his face. His eyelids were swollen nearly shut, obscuring his steel blue-gray eyes from view. Already, his armor was shattered and dented, the fractured shoulder plating now shattered as the Honor of Cormorant was tattered and torn beyond recognition. His signature shield on his arm was bent and on the verge of having major components fall apart, and his Duskrender helmet in ruins, the evidence at his feet as pieces of the armor were on the floor.

His breathing was rapid, both from the pain he's suffering and how he was able to survive in a low-oxygen environment. Because of his torture, the damage to his armor prohibited oxygen being directly fed to his body since it's on an emergency protocol of its own. And that emergency protocol was to use whatever power his armor had to try and relay a distress signal.

 _Whack!_

Spectre coughed out blood as another punch was thrown into his abdomen by his captor, another spray of red blood flowing out of his lips and an audible crack following the punch. The metallic taste of his own blood wasn't anything new to him, since it happened far too often in his missions involving anything that would spell death. Even if he was suspended from the ceiling, he remained silent to it all.

"Tch, not even my first Guardian I captured and already you're close to the verge of breaking." In the darkness of the cell, the Sunbreaker could see the shape of another Titan, but corrupted by the Taken parasite. As to his knowledge, none of the Guardians from the Tower and beyond have been reported MIA since the start of the Taken War. "I thought you were tougher when you were on your own after killing the Echo. And what do I find? A Thrall of a Guardian." He stomped on the remains of the Duskrender helmet, shattering it like it was glass instead of plasteel and other materials.

The Sunbreaker painfully moved his head to look at his captor in the eye, the blood dripping out of the side of his lip. "Says the Titan…who used a cheap…move in capturing me." He spat out the blood in his mouth at the Titan under Oryx's command. Another punch, this time right in the chest. The blow felt more of a Fallen Skiff falling right on top of him rather than a Taken Guardian's version of a melee.

"Do you realize how many bones I've already broken in your body?"

He wasn't kidding on that part. If one were to closely look at Spectre, they would see some of his bones already sticking out of his protective armor, yet he's still alive and breathing. Even worse, his breathing was both rapid and irregular and it felt like every time he took a breath, it was rattled like there were pieces in his lungs. He didn't want to risk any form of collapsed lungs, but he had to survive as well. "I doubt…you broke any…thing."

Just before Spectre's captor could deliver another punch, the door leading to the cell began to creak open, much like a million stones grinding against metal. And as soon as the door opened, the entire atmosphere of the cell dropped to the darkest it can go. From the dim light, Spectre saw the shape of an all too familiar form.

The Taken King approached his hanging prisoner, snarling like most Hive. His Taken influence flowed across his body like many popped out veins, disgusting yet terrifying at the same time. Spectre's torturer knelt down on one knee like a knight, head bowed in respect. Oryx was mere feet away from Spectre, the two of them making eye contact. In an instant, the Taken King grabbed Spectre by the neck, his giant paw-like hand just as easily suffocating him.

"You…" even if Oryx was at his peak in intimidation, Spectre was not as easily intimidated by the Hive. Not even their king. "You are the one who killed my son."

"So…what? There's a…number of Guardians…involved in Crota's…death."

Enraged, the Taken King increased his grip on the Titan, cutting off more of his breathing as he inched closer and snarled. "Do not lie to me, Warrior of the Light. I know it was _you_. His blood is all over you."

"Crota…deserved…it. Killed off…too many…of our own."

"A sacrifice worthy for our crusade. And a covenant that I shall finish." The Taken Knight released his grip from the Titan's neck, letting the amount of air he suffered return.

"You sicken me. Is that all you're really…after? Avenging your dead…son?"

"You are not worthy to be in my presence, but you shall suffer for the death of Crota. One by one, I will Take everything from you. Your friends, your family, your comrades, and your beloved Traveler. And my Right Hand shall start by Taking your Light." Oryx turned around and started to leave his prisoner's cell, but not before turning his head in the direction of the Right Hand, who was already at his feet and head still bowed. "Make sure he suffers greatly, my servant."

"As you wish, my king."

Spectre's breathing slowed to short breaths, his eyesight going from perfectly clear to blurry within a matter of time. In the haze of his vision, he saw the shape that was the Taken King leave the cell, the doors screaming shut until a heavy thud signified his absence. His sight then focused on the Right Hand, whom had already brandished Spectre's confiscated knife. All it took was to spin the knife like a pro and stab Spectre right in the side. The hung Sunbreaker weakly cried out in pain and his head slumped.

"You know, if it were up to me, I could have made you one of us. Maybe even become Oryx's Left Hand. But no. You had to interfere with my king's plans and eliminate his Echo." Another stab, this time in the calf. Spectre cried out louder than the one in his side. "And for my king, I will deliver judgement to those who defy him," the Right Hand dug the knife deeper in the shin, savoring every wincing moment of the Titan suffering from his own knife. "Back where I come from, we have a method of keeping the prisoner sane until their death. And you want to know how it goes?"

"Do I look like…I give a damn?"

"Wrong answer," the Right Hand punched Spectre in the stomach, then plunged the knife in his chest. The stab kept the Sunbreaker alive, but it added more to his pain. "We count down from one thousand by seven."

"Go…to…hell." Spectre howled weakly as the Taken Guardian dug the knife a little deeper, then cupping one side of his helmet to hear an answer.

"Go on. Start counting down. It would be a shame to have you broken by the time you reach the halfway point."

"Nine hundred…ninety-three… Nine hundred…eighty…six…"

And just as Spectre reached nine hundred and seventy-nine, the real torture began. He began to drift in and out of consciousness as the Right Hand continued. Every wound he took made his cries of pain into raspy counterparts of what it should be.

In the dark corners of his head, he was praying for someone from the Tower to rescue him. He didn't care whether or not it was one of many Fireteams, his fireteam, the many disciples under the Ancient Vanguard or the entire legion of Guardians from all across the Solar System. He didn't want death this early.

 _Please… Help me… Some…one…_


	11. I-XI: In with the Darkness

**A/N: To all readers in Japan reading** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **, please forgive me if I butcher your language.** _ **Gommennasai**_ **(Sorry)** **.**

 _ **Chapter XI: In with the Darkness**_

* * *

 _Orbit of Jupiter, Solar System_

 _"It is good to hear from you, yes? Petra mauled by grief when word of Awoken fleet eliminated by Dreadnaught reached her. Thought no one made it out,"_ the familiar voice of the Vandal belonging to the House of Judgement rang crisp and clear within the helmet of the Queen's personal knight, whom was already in her _Draught of Nectar_ far away from the _Hades' Soul_. She was lucky to have snuck away from the Cabal warship undetected, and that was just a small step into her plan.

"Sorry for making you and Petra worried, Variks. I had some business to attend to." The Sunstriker checked all of her vital instruments to both her ship and armor, confirming whether or not she was ready to go. "Variks, I have a favor to ask of you."

 _"How shall I help you, my friend?"_

"I want you to scan for any form of distress signals coming from the Dreadnaught and relay it to me as soon as I do one last thing. I'm headed back to Earth."

 _"I assume this is another of your suicidal plans, yes?"_ she heard the Vandal chuckle in his foreign tongue, setting coordinates back to Earth. _"I shall do as you ask. Good luck."_

"You know me too well that I won't need it." Once the ship confirmed the coordinates to her destination, she punched the 'launch' command on her console. The HUD in front of her eyes started counting down, and she took a deep breath as it continued to tick away the minutes until her ship makes the jump.

 _Spectre… I swear it. I will protect you. I'll get you out of there…but not without the rest of us._ As much as Silver, Rez, and the others on _Hades' Soul_ was reliable and trustworthy, there were some aspects between her and her brother that none of them knew. They didn't understand the both of them. Not like the rest of the _kazoku_. A _kazoku_ that Lightning and Spectre had grown up with.

The hand on the overdrive throttle gripped it tighter than normal, and her teeth grinded against each other. For all of her life, she had to obey the wishes and orders the Cyphers gave her, and she knew how much Spectre had acted like an insubordinate. But now…now she just couldn't take it. It further boiled her blood. She wouldn't abandon her family. Not now, and not ever.

The Cyphers contacted her on a private comms channel unknown to the Tower and the Speaker. And what they said pissed her off. For the first time since they sent her off to the Reef.

They knew about Spectre's capture. They knew that he was without Primus. And the worst of it all? The Cyphers pulled the plug on Spectre being the one to carry out the Absolution Directive and left him for dead. They won't rescue him. Because in their eyes, he failed them. He didn't live up to their expectations just with his capture. And to add salt to her wound, they transferred his part of the Absolution Directive to her and expected her to complete it, despite her protests of never abandoning her brother and saying that he was the better candidate for the Absolution Directive. Even with her protests, they simply refused to listen to her and just signed off. Now she understood why Spectre hated them, aside from forcing him to kill Vesper.

She glanced towards a pre-Golden Age frame resting next to the stand where her Empress of the Abyss was put away. In the ancient relic that practically no one else would use, she felt remorse and a feeling of content. The photo was of her, Spectre and their about-to-be sister-in-law, along with three others huddled around and smiling…except for one, who only crossed his arms while the rest enjoyed the moment. All in all, the photo revealed that, including her brother, Vesper and herself, there were a male Titan, a Hunter, and one female Warlock. The only oddest thing about the six was that they were all human. No signs of the Awoken or Exos anywhere.

 _For the first time in nine years, I'll see the rest of them. I'll be coming home…to them._

The countdown on her interlinked HUD finally reached zero. At the instant the timer reached zero, her ship made the launch to jumpspace, entering the all-too familiar cobalt tunnel.

 _ **-Destiny-**_

 _Old Tokyo, Old Japan_

 _Out of all the places on Earth he could've chosen to train and or seclude himself, it had to be here. Why am I not surprised?_ As much as she was used to the Old Russia environment, this terrain and environment was something she never got to adapt to. Given that the terrain in Old Tokyo─now a city overflowing with vegetation much like Old New York─, it just reminded her of Old Chicago. And with it, her motivation of why she changed now.

Even in this environment, it's clear as day that due to the vegetation, anything could be lurking within them. The sound of chirping birds native to the area was the only sound to the Titan and Ghost's ears, which was the only thing they heard aside from Lightning trudging through the knee-deep grass.

The Sunstriker continued to walk down one of the many streets near one of the parks in Tokyo, completely lost and unsure about where to find them. **"Don't you really think that this was a bad idea? I mean, you don't even know where to find him in the first place."** The 'twin' of Primus asked, shell whirring as she looked at her partner. Artemis only got a scoff in reply.

"That's one thing you need to know about him."

 **"And that is?"**

The Ghost's question was abruptly answered when a wave of unknown blue energy came streaking against the ground like a shark's fin on land from deep within the vegetation. Quickly, Lightning drew out her Infinite Edge and deflected the fin-like attack. However, the energy attack dispersed and separated into smaller versions of themselves on contact, which struck the Titan in many areas. Acting in unison, the attack give out their last blow, throwing her across the street.

 **"Lightning!"**

Shaking off the impact, Lightning only had a split moment to react before a shadow appeared from above, a giant sword in hand and struck downward with it. She attempted to roll out of the way, but her foot was caught in a pothole in the ground, mixed with vegetation that tangled itself to her ankle. By the time Lightning looked up, she was already too late. The flat end of the blade threw her back where her Ghost was still hovering, skidding against the concrete. Stabbing her sword into the ground, she used it as support and got back up, quickly removing it from the concrete and blocking with her sword. The metals between the two sparked, the Solar-Arc fusion from her Infinite edge dancing like a storm against the dull-black sword that was about the width of a mirror. Comparing the two swords, it would seem that Lightning's Infinite Edge should've broke against the larger blade. But that wasn't the case.

She took advantage of the situation and swiftly delivered the same Arcburn strike she used on Adam back on _Hades' Soul_ , melting off the lower jaw portion of the attacker's helmet. However, the attacker had evaded the thrown punch and grasped Lightning's neck, pinning her against the wall. He raised his sword, ready to put her down. The older twin of Spectre only winced and closed her eyes, wanting the 'Guardian down' state to come already.

A heavy thud rang in her ears, and for once, did she dare look. Instead of the blade tearing her in half, it found itself embedded in the wall, the attacker's helmet staring at her own. Their hand was still wrapped around her neck, but not as forceful as it was only a few seconds ago.

 _"Ohisashiburu desu, Raitoningu-san._ It's been a while, Lightning. _"_ The attacker freed his weapon from the wall, slinging it against his back and letting go of Lightning. Now, Lightning was able to get a better look at the one who attacked her. It was a Titan, sharing the same black colored scheme like Spectre, Rez and Reaper, but entirely different in terms of armor. In fact, three of the four armor types were Exotic-grade. He had An Insurmountable Skullfort for a helmet, the 'bulls-eye' lighting on the visor completely absent and visor colored like the rest of the armor; Ruin Wings as his gauntlets; Spearhead Type 0 covering his chest and torso with the metal badge of a wolf's head over his heart connecting two straps forming an 'x' on his chest; and a full set of Mk. 44 Stand Asides as his boots. He had no mark that made him a Titan whatsoever, but there were pouches around his hip like the ones on Spectre's Honor of Cormorant present and black cloth covering his left leg and right arm.

Under her Golden Bull Mask, she only faintly smiled as he did in the photo they all took. "Not surprising to see you secluded in a place like this, Cloud."

 _"Cyphers kara nani wo kitai shi masu ka?_ What would you expect from the Cyphers?" the titan responded, looking over her shoulder at Artemis, then back at her. _"Spectre-san ha doko desu?_ Where's Spectre?"

"That's exactly why I'm here."

 _"Karega komatte iru ja nai desu ka?_ He's in trouble, isn't he?"

"Yeah. And honestly, I need you and the rest of the _kazoku_ to help me," hovering right above the two Titans was the familiar _Draught of Nectar_ owned by the Sunstriker, the rear hatch opening for the two to board.

 _"Ta no ni nin ga iru baai ha kono chikyuujou ni nokotte tsu ichi dake._ If you want to know where the other two are, there's only one place left on the planet."

"Right. Looks like we have one last stop," just as she set foot in her ship, her comms channel began ringing. She pressed two fingers to her audio receptor. "Variks, did you find anything?"

 _"Was looking, searching for signals. Could not find one. Could not understand Spectre's signal wavelength. Bad data. Search signals?"_ Variks laughed once more in his Fallen tongue, indicating whether it was good news or bad news. _"Could not find distress signal because there is none. Picked up faint signal within Dreadnaught."_

"Knowing Spectre, he would've kept his signal below the radar because of the Skyburners. I'll start from that faint signal, Variks. Relay me the coordinates of that signal."

 _ **-Destiny-**_

 _Rings of Saturn, Solar System_

"So that's where Spectre's being held."

A Hunter observed from the loading bay in the _Draught of Nectar_ , taking in the sight of the Dreadnaught. Based on his look from the light, he had brown unruly hair and eyes similar in shade to Spectre and Lightning, but the more defining aspect was a diagonal scar across his forehead and nose. He sat next to Cloud, whose giant sword was leaning against the bench since the weapon couldn't let him sit down.

"Let's admit it, he was bound to screw up somewhere eventually."

 _"Watashiha Spectre-san ga kareni sashidasu nantoka odoroi te iru watashitachi no nokori no bubun ni dokuji. Sonogo, futatabi kareto Vesupaa i tachikaku ni ari masu…_ I'm surprised that Spectre managed to hold out on his own without the rest of us. Then again, he and Vesper were close…"

"Holding his own weight for four years? Knowing him, he was probably drowning in his sorrow."

"Stop with the negative responses, Leon," the Warlock of the group spoke up between the Hunter and Titan's 'argument', closing a hardbound journal that she was skimming through in her one hand. In the dim light of the loading bay, Cloud and Leon could see a woman around their age with short hair with an unnatural light blue color and dark blue eyes contrasting her hair. "I can remember the times you were in the same position, but with your sis─"

"I get the point, Aqua!" exclaimed Leon, springing up from the bench to start a fight with the Titan. Before long, Cloud put a hand on his shoulder and drove him back down on the bench with his insane strength.

 _"Reon-san, juubun desu._ That's enough, Leon," even if Cloud is behind his helmet, the glare he could've sent towards the Hunter already shut him up. _"Watashitachi no subete kara karega, un no warui koto wo oboe nakere ba nari mase n. Naze tak, karega aisuru josei wo korosu tame ni karega aru no daro u ka. Anata no imouto ga tamatama josei desu ka?_ Out of all of us, you have to remember that he was the unluckiest. Why else would he have to kill the woman he loves? A woman that happens to be your sister?"

"Damn you, Cloud. You and your silver tongue…"

 _"Sore ha watashiga kangae ta mono desu._ That's what I thought."

Leon looked over at the Warlock across from him, who only opened the journal and dove deep into what was within it. Her eyes skimmed over each and every line of text and flipped the pages with one finger, followed by her page-flipping hand out and formulating many variations of the Warlock's Force Ignite. From an amplified version of the Stormcaller's Thunderstrike to a floating shard of ice in her hand that was gradually growing, she was clearly a force to be reckoned with, especially with her versatility in her Force Ignite. His attention switched over to his own weapon leaning against the bench much like Cloud's sword. It was intriguing to the sight, with the frame of a handcannon and a sword's blade replacing the barrel of the weapon. Imprinted on the sides of the weapon was the insignia of a lion's head.

The door leading to the cockpit of the _Draught of Nectar_ opened, and in came in Lightning, her weapons both sword and auto rifle at the ready. She hadn't removed her helmet since she picked up Cloud from his 'shrine' in old Tokyo, so the three waiting for landing had to do with it. Cloud, Aqua and Leon directed their attention to the Sunstriker, the shard of ice in Aqua's hand fading away to particles and the Hunter resting his weapon on his lap.

"Are you guys ready for this?" asked Lightning, looking towards Cloud first.

 _"Hai._ Yes."

Aqua tucked her hardbound journal into her side pack, tugging at the hem of her gauntlets. "I'm in too. Besides, Spectre isn't just a member of our Fireteam before he was assigned to the Absolution Directive. He's family. And the four of us is all he has left."

 _Two out of the three down._ Lightning then redirected her attention to Vesper's brother, "Leon?"

"…As much as I personally want to go back to my business, I suppose I can spare some time getting our _brother_ back from the clutches of the Taken King." Venom seethed at the word 'brother', both from the idea of someone like Spectre trying to be his brother-in-law and from previous confrontations.

"Then get ready. We'll be landing in two minutes."

The three acknowledged the order from Lightning and put on their gear, Leon and Aqua putting on their helmets. As if she knew, the Warlock got up and followed after Spectre's older sister, standing in the cockpit with her. Lightning was in the pilot's seat, fist on her cheek and arm propped on the armrest. Obviously, autopilot was active, and Aqua knew that Lightning was in one of her rather rare 'blaming/beating herself up for what she had done' moments. She could just tell.

"Light…" the Warlock placed an assuring hand on the Titan's shoulder, "Don't worry. We'll get him back. You know how all of us were trained."

"I know. I just hope we're not too late." Lightning's Ghost appeared over her shoulder, pressing her shell against her shoulder to do its best to comfort her. "I know Spectre could hold out for so long against the Hive, but this capture… It can't be any typical Hive."

"Are you suggesting that…?"

"Oryx Took a Guardian." Lightning added bluntly, "A Guardian that either despises my brother or all Guardians. Primus said it was a Titan, but it can't be Adam… So who else could it be…?"

Soon enough, her train of thought was derailed. Derailed like another train crashing into it from the side. Under her Golden Bull Mask, her eyes widened. A soft chime similar to pre-Golden Age wind chimes reached the Titan and Warlock's ears, prompting the two to dig into their packs. They found their rose-shaped crystals, and both of them were in one hell of a surprise.

One of the five petals began to wither, despite the rose being made out of crystal. And that meant one thing.

 _I'm not losing him, not like Vesper!_ Lightning switched to manual control and hit the overdrive throttle. The silver and black ship raced towards the Dreadnaught, completely unaware that they were in sight of the Cabal warship that Lightning snuck away from.

* * *

… _Where am… I?_

Nothing. The Sunbreaker known to many Guardians as Spectre felt nothing. All there was to him was just…nothing but white. He couldn't move, nor see anything.

 _Am I… Dead?_

Spectre felt like he was floating in the water or floating in zero gravity. He tried to open his eyes, but they refused to obey his command. He also tried moving his arms, but like his eyes, they didn't listen and remained still as a statue. Even behind his eyelids, he saw nothing but white.

 _So this… is how it ends for me. The Tower's greatest hero, KIA by the newest threat to the system…_

He couldn't recall much. The only bits and pieces of his memories during his torture by the Right Hand was the constant beating and stabbings, as well as having a tiny Hive worm in his ear as a part of the Right Hand's sick method of torture. So far, he could only come up with two outcomes. He either died mid-torture, or he slipped into unconsciousness. Hours and hours has he gone through it all. The pain kept piling up until it buried him whole.

 _"Wild flower, blossoming,_

 _I beg of you, tell me this so I know too,_

 _Why do people fight? They all act as if it's right~"_

 _That voice…_

Spectre heard it was close by, just within his ears. He couldn't register whose voice it belonged to right now, but it sounded familiar… And so did the string of verses. It sounded like a lullaby, but it also had aspects of a requiem from the singer's pitch. Soon enough, he felt something. A hand. Fingers brushing against his bloodied and beaten face warmly and gently, followed by humming.

 _"Don't they know that's no way to live?_

 _Valiant flower, blossoming,_

 _What can you see when you look down on me?_

 _Why can't people say that they're sorry for the way that they've fought~"_

Spectre's recollection of his mind began to piece it all together, and eventually he felt his head resting against something like a pillow. A gentle breeze ran through his hair, and so did a smell. A smell of many flowers filling his nostrils. Out of the flowers he could name off the top of his head, one of them has a rather strong presence. The scent of roses. _It_ _has to be… It_ must _be!_

 _"I thought we once could,_

 _When the sky has cleared and rains have passed,_

 _I still won't forget the past,_

 _You are not alone on your own~"_

"Ves…per…" Spectre groaned, struggling to open his eyes. The singing stopped, and the hand he felt against his face found its place on his scar-sided cheek. After what seemed to be an eternity, he opened his eyes. Despite his vision being blurry, he saw the silhouette of a human Huntress looking down at him and smiling.

 _"Wake up, sleepyhead."_

Another face appeared in his hazy vision, energetic and eager in their entrance and looking down at him. He didn't recognize them, but it appeared to be a child and he saw a bit of long brown hair and a cheerful and innocent smile on their face.

 _"Hi, daddy!"_

* * *

 **Well, cliffhangers galore! Really, that's all I have to say… Nah, not really.**

 **Short and sweet bios for the rest of Spectre's** _ **kazoku**_ **(family in Japanese). Enjoy.**

 **Cloud:**

 **Main Subclass: Unidentifiable by Tower and Vanguard database, known only as 'Buster' (Talent Nodes: Meteorstorm Grenade (Solar grenade that delivers a devastating explosion on impact and splits to cover a large area); Blink (Lift); Omnislash (Super); Voidburn Strike (Void/Solar-fused melee); Titan Codex II; Unstoppable SOLDIER (Extremely harder to kill while using Omnislash); Titan Codex IV; Limit Breaker (Every enemy brought down by sword or melee or hit taken charges Super and Limit significantly, allowing Cloud to use Omnislash and Limit attacks more frequently)**

 **Primary Weapon: None**

 **Special Weapon: None**

 **Heavy Weapon: Buster Sword, Fusion Swords (When equipped, Super changes from Omnislash Version 1 to Omnislash Version 6)**

 **Ghost Shell: None**

 **Helmet: An Insurmountable Skullfort**

 **Gauntlets: Ruin Wings (Seeds of Ruin Exotic perk replaced with new perk 'Mako Infusion', making Cloud near invincible when using Limit attacks and unable to cancel Limit attacks when hit by an enemy)**

 **Chest: Spearhead Type 0 (Removed radio antenna and decorated as described in chapter)**

 **Legs: Mk.44 Stand Asides (Be Somewhere Else Exotic perk replaced with new perk 'Dash and Slash', giving a variation of Shoulder Charge where Cloud dashes and delivers a devastating slash from his sword)**

 **Mark: None**

 **Artifact: Holy Materia**

 **Shader: Fenrir (Legendary-class Shader that takes on a completely black look with a dull shine)**

 **Bio: Prodigy in his own right and lone wolf of Spectre and Lightning's** _ **kazoku**_ **, Cloud is one of the three that doesn't utilize firearms in any shape or form, but instead relies on his sword. Cloud used to speak in English before, but after an assignment given to him by the Cyphers, he was wounded to the degree that his vocals couldn't allow him to continue speaking in English, forcing him to speak in another language, Japanese. Leon, Aqua, Spectre, Vesper and Lightning could understand him well in Japanese, and the reverse can be said with Cloud. Eventually, after Vesper's death, he secluded himself in the ruins of Old Tokyo, where he continued to train against the Fallen in the area and becoming better in his surroundings.**

 **Leon:**

 **Main Subclass: Unidentifiable by the Tower and Vanguard database, known only as 'Griever' (Talent Nodes: Seeker Grenade (Solar grenade that scatters on impact and releases explosive drones that track nearby targets. Think of the Seeker Grenade like Gjallarhorn's Wolfpack Rounds as a throwable grenade); Balanced Double Jump (Combines Better Control, Higher Jump and Triple Jump); Renzokuken (Super); Disintegrating Blade (Void knife attack that disintegrates its victims much like a Voidwalker's Energy Drain and Defender's Disintegrate melee); Path Forgotten; Lion's Prodigy (Like Cloud's Unstoppable SOLDIER, Leon is extremely difficult to kill during his Super startup and the duration of Renzokuken); Way of the Drifter; Lion's Marauder (Further amplifies Leon's critical slashes by 300%, and each successful kill with the critical slashes boosts Armor, Recovery and Agility)**

 **Primary Weapon: None**

 **Special Weapon: None**

 **Heavy Weapon: Lion's Heart**

 **Ghost Shell: None**

 **Helmet: Graviton Forfeit (Void flare removed from helmet; Elusive Shadow Exotic Perk replaced with new perk 'Griever's Roar', allowing Leon to warp around much like the Vex and causing either an explosion or shockwave upon the end of the warp)**

 **Gauntlets: Don't Touch Me (Horn on right gauntlet broken)**

 **Chest: Carnivore Match**

 **Legs: Fr0st-EE5**

 **Cloak: Lion's Legacy (Black and white reskinned Kallipolis Mantle with a Lion's head emblem replacing the New Monarchy emblem)**

 **Artifact: Rainbow Blade**

 **Shader: Griever (Legendary-class Shader that takes on black for the entirety of the Shader, but white in the inner linings of his armor and cloth on his chestplate)**

 **Bio: Younger brother of Vesper and resident precursor to Lightning after her reassignment to the Reef, Leon is a part of the** _ **kazoku**_ **comprising of his sister, Spectre, Cloud, Aqua and Lightning that utilizes no guns but relies on a weapon he built himself, the gunblade. Normally, he wouldn't give a damn about anything but his sister, but pretty much finds time to duel with the other five of the** _ **kazoku**_ **. He was Cloud's partner when he lost his ability to speak in English, and put the blame on himself pretty badly. However, during a fight between him and Spectre, Leon became too reckless that he received his scar from his nose and forehead from carelessness. After Vesper's death, Leon became bitter at his soon-to-be brother-in-law and further distanced himself from the rest of the** _ **kazoku**_ **, eventually finding refuge with Aqua.**

 **Aqua:**

 **Main Subclass: Unidentifiable by Tower and Vanguard database, known only as 'Sorceress' (Talent Nodes: Axis Grenade (Modified Axion Bolt Grenade that randomizes between Arc, Void and Solar upon use and delivers a devastating bolt of energy that separates into a larger amount of smaller bolts); Blink (Glide); Ghost Drive (Super, similar to Radiance from Sunsingers, but relies on offense rather than defense and support, allowing her to attack at blinding speed while using after-image illusions and tricky movements to her advantage); Sorceress's Force (With her journal, Aqua's Force Ignite can vary to provide an infinite amount of possible combat uses); Arcane Wisdom; Master of Sorcery (Each kill while in Ghost Drive strengthens the next one); Ancestral Order; Sorceress of the Abyss (When using either a charged Super, grenade or melee, all enemies of the Darkness combust upon death, chaining the combustion effect to nearby enemies as well as increasing her power in a stackable effect up to three times)**

 **Primary Weapon: None**

 **Special Weapon: None**

 **Heavy Weapon: Custom sword 'Stormfall'**

 **Ghost Shell: None**

 **Helmet: Light Beyond Nemesis (Keeper of the Pack Exotic perk replaced with new perk 'Mercy of the Light', which will start regenerating her health when her health is below two percent)**

 **Gauntlets: Azoth Bend I (Pattern on right gauntlet removed, replaced with an emblem resembling a drop of water)**

 **Chest: Voidfang Vestments (Hungering Void Exotic perk replaced with new perk 'Curse of the Dark', which allows Aqua to use an uncharged grenade, Super or melee at the cost of some of her health)**

 **Legs: Transversive Steps (Strange Angles Exotic perk remains, but part of it is changed. Picking up ammo and reloading removed with allowing Aqua to vanish upon walking when crouching)**

 **Bond: Binary Lazarus**

 **Artifact: Wayfinder**

 **Shader: Empress of the Abyss (Legendary-class Shader that takes on a black and blue look with small streaks of pink on the chestplate)**

 **Bio: The most unique among the** _ **kazoku**_ **and the only Warlock, Aqua is a master in the one thing Warlocks have drawn inspiration from: sorcery and magic and utilizes a unique sword compared to the ones used by Spectre, Lightning, and Cloud. Usually calm and collected, with a devotion to them as well as a desire to do what's right, Aqua established her own set of rules that makes her stand out from the typical Warlock and looks out for everyone in the small 'family', acting as a big sister for them all. Despite her mastery in the elements, her favored element is none other than her namesake: water. After Vesper's death, she comforted Spectre, Leon and Lightning to the best of her ability until the Cyphers assigned Spectre to be the spearhead of the Absolution Directive and moved Lightning to the Reef, leaving her with Leon to support until they, eventually, fell in love.**

 **Chapter XII is it. Next time, it will be time to see whether or not Spectre lives through it all, or becomes Taken. But first, he has some things to discuss with Vesper…**


	12. I-XII: Unravel

_**Chapter XII: Unravel**_

* * *

He just didn't see it coming.

Not even once in his life has the idea of having children crossed his mind, mostly due to how much he was grieving since he executed his fiancée.

But it did just so happened to be.

Spectre, the spearhead of the Cyphers' so-called 'Absolution Directive', had a child. With his fiancée, no less!

"So, she's really…?" the Sunbreaker managed to support his upper half using his arms, lifting his head from his lover's lap and looking at the child. Again, the child smiled ever so innocently before proceeding to jump into his arms. He noticed that instead of his destroyed and battered armor, he was in his casual wear that he used during his date with Reaper.

Vesper looked down at her daughter and fiancée bonding, smiling. _"I'm sorry, Spectre. I tried to tell you, but─"_

"But then came the order for your elimination _and_ you were corrupted by the time I found you," his daughter snuggled her head against his chest, and he awkwardly ran his hand against her hair. "Who knew? We were on the way to being married, but you had a surprise growing inside you." Guilt and remorse grew in him, and his daughter looked up at him. It was clear that she shared traits from both of her parents. She had her mother's emerald green eyes, but the shape of her eyes was his. Her hair was the same style as Vesper's─long and silky─, but had her right eye covered by some of her bangs like his.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, Vesper, but isn't there supposed to be a 50-50 chance that our child will have blonde or black hair?" in response, Vesper playfully slapped the back of his head, causing their daughter to giggle.

 _"Obviously, you didn't pay attention in class."_

"C'mon, learning about genetics was boring for the most part."

 _"Not when you're going to have a child,"_ she 'scowled' at him. _"Besides, unlike a certain Titan I know, Rose has been a good girl. Isn't that right, dear?"_

 _"Yes, mommy!"_ Rose turned to face her father, sticking out her tongue. _"Bad daddy! You hurt mommy's feelings!"_

"Rose, huh…? Wonder why mommy gave you that name…"

Rose didn't stay mad at her father for too long and returned to her loving demeanor. Spectre sat straight up and put Rose on his lap, Vesper sitting next to him and causing their little girl to hug the both of them.

 _"Mommy gave me that name because of the red flowers! She said they remind her of you, daddy!"_

 _"And speaking of flowers…"_ Vesper butted in, looking at her lover with a glint of love in her eyes, _"Do you recognize this place, Spectre?"_

The Sunbreaker looked around, noting the field they were in. The field was surrounded with flowers of many kinds, and the sky above them was all white like the familiar blue sky was covered by clouds. A gentle breeze ran across the area, the flowers swaying gracefully.

"This is… This is the field that you and I often played in when we were kids."

 _"And where we first confessed our love, and then where you proposed to me,"_ Vesper fiddled around with a gold band around her ring finger, a rose engraving running across the surface and a gemstone with the same iridescence as Lightning's crystal embedded. _"But, then again, it was also where…"_

Spectre faced the ground shamefully, the memories of her execution by his hand coming in a flood. Out of all the memories he had with her in this field, from the times the two of them played in the field, to their confession and first kiss when they were considered teenagers by Pre-Golden Age standards, and their engagement, the black sheep of it all was her death. The guilt piled up once more, breaking down the wall that was the façade he used around the other Guardians.

"I took lives, not make them," he breathed, Rose nuzzling her head under his chin as if she knew the pain inside him. "Among them, out of you, Light, Cloud, Leon, and Aqua, I was the most feared and the reason why I became the spearhead to the Absolution Directive." His eyes began to flood, and he felt something run down his eye. _Wait, am I…crying?_

Spectre never cried. Not since he killed Vesper and their daughter that was growing in her. But after years of mourning without knowing she was pregnant, he was breaking down from the revelation.

"I'm sorry…" he held Rose tighter, the tears in his eyes going out of control and some of them going into her hair. "After all this time of killing the Cyphers' enemies─Fallen, Hive, even the ones against the Absolution Directive─, I killed an innocent life. One that was never born into the world… I'm sorry, Rose… I'm the worst daddy in the world…"

 _"Daddy, stop crying…"_ Rose was on the verge of crying too, and she held Spectre closer. _"You're not the worst, daddy."_

 _"Rose is right, honey. It wasn't your fault that you killed us."_

"But…!"

Vesper shushed him, placing a finger over his lips and taking his chin in her other hand. _"Look at me in the eyes. What do you see?"_

Spectre turned to face her, who tilted her head to the side and warmly smiling as he looked deep into his fiancée's emerald eyes. The green eyes he loved to see wasn't empty like when he had to execute her. Instead, they were filled with forgiveness. A feeling that he never had the chance of having. A spark of memories the two shared was ever so present in them, both from their happiest memories and of Spectre's greatest accomplishments as a hero of the Tower.

 _"Do you remember when you first used Sunbreaker?"_

"…Yeah. Thought the three of us were done for…"

 _ **-Destiny-**_

 _The Stills, Moon_

 _"There's just too many of them!" shouted Rez, switching to his Last Word when his Vestian Dynasty ran out of ammo. The trio was on the move, already past the fifth Lantern of Light and en-route to the sixth._

 _"Just had to waste all that ammo, didn't you?!"_

 _"This is why you're better off fighting the Vex than the Hive!" Spectre, clad in Spearhead Type 0 gear excluding his ACD/0 Feedback Fence, threw a punch at one of the Thrall rushing towards Nero Bianco, tossing a Flashbang Grenade before opening fire with SUROS Regime at the rest of the incoming swarm. The grenade blinded all of the Thrall, all of them shielding their eyes like a bunch of cowards before the bullets from the auto rifle filled them full of holes._

 _"Spectre, behind us!"_

 _The screech of the Thrall came from behind, Silver and Rez already throwing down their Solar and Arcbolt Grenades at the swarm, picking off the survivors faster than anyone could start singing the first verse of 'Paint it Black'. As for their leader, his auto rifle ran out of ammo. Growling, he put the Exotic auto rifle on his back. He was out of ammo for his shotgun, and using his Gjallarhorn was too dangerous, especially since the Thrall in the Stills were faster than the ones he and his team were used to on Earth and the surface of the Moon. With no other option, he knelt down and punched the ground, a tsunami of Arc energy erupting from the ground and his fist as it raced away from him in all directions and frying the wimps of the Hive army, both normal and Cursed._

 _"C'mon, we gotta go!" Silver called out, the Lantern of Light they were taking refuge behind turning a blood red. From what Silver established from Toland's notes, these Lanterns of Light explode if in the presence of Guardians for a long period of time._

 _"Hate to burst your bubble, Silver, but we've got bigger problems!" Rez pointed out. A glowing blob that was an Ogre's head appeared in the darkness of the Stills. Flanking it were Cleaver-wielding Knights and Hallowed Wizards, all of them in shields._

 _"Oh, son of a─!" the Exo cursed._

"Move!"

 _Silver and Rez didn't hesitate and began to move as the Ogre started shooting its eye beams at the three-man team. Nero Bianco managed to get out of the way of the Ogre's attack and the Wizards' poison clouds, but the eye beams struck the Lantern of Light. The Lantern exploded from the barrage, throwing the small Fireteam in different directions._

 _Spectre collided against the rock formation next to the Ogre and away from the rest of his team, back slamming against it. An audible crack rang in his ears, and his helmet's HUD started giving him the warning that he was in critical health._

 _"Dammit…" he managed to get back on his feet, clutching his side as if a rock had impaled itself through. Rez and Silver were having a small bit of difficulty holding off the Knights and Wizards, especially since Silver was using his MIDA Multi-Tool and Rez was dual wielding his Thorn and Hawkmoon._

 _In the far reaches of his vision, he saw the Ogre starting to charge its eyebeams, and creeping along behind his Fireteam were Cursed Thrall. Cursed Thrall, Ogre's eyebeam…_

Dammit, what can I do!? _Spectre punched the rock defeatingly, shattering a bit of it off._ I can't use my Fist of Havoc, and it won't kill the Ogre in time… _He clenched his fist, the tension physically impossible and small sparks of Arc energy in his fist emitting._ I can't use my Super without having Primus charge it!

 _He continued to watch helplessly as his teammates were starting to struggle with the Knights, even though the wrath of two handcannons aimed at the head with precision shots from the MIDA should be enough. However, he failed to notice his clenched fist, where the sparks had somehow turned to flames. Following the change from sparks to flames was the hefty weight of a hammer, the familiar Hammer of Sol in his hand._

 _"What the…?" Spectre looked down at his hand with the sudden weight, not only noting the flaming hammer in hand, but also his own body enveloped in Solar energy. His Holborn's Host Mark had another Hammer of Sol clipped on his belt above the torn Mark, this one not burning with Solar energy. He had no time to stare in awe at his new power; Silver and Rez might as well be close to death's door!_

"Get some, you Hive trash!"

 _ **-Destiny-**_

 _"Wow, so that was how daddy became a Sunbreaker?!"_ Rose saw the memory of her daddy as he recollected, ecstatic at how cool he was. _"I wanna be a Titan like daddy!"_

"Do you think you can take the responsibility?" Spectre looked down at her, who was nodding very eagerly. "Being a Titan doesn't just mean being able to punch your enemies in the nose and greet the end of your hammer to your enemies' face. It's about being the front lines and the last line of defense."

 _"You fight and defend at the same time?"_ Rose raised an eyebrow. _"Isn't that too much?"_

"You don't have to do both at the same time. There are times that a Titan needs to be one. And I quote Commander Zavala, 'there are two types of Titans. One is that they are walking tanks, and another is the wall against which the Darkness breaks.'"

 _"Honestly, I think Rose is more suited to be a Huntress. That way, she can retain honor and trickery without having to be stuck being a guard at the Last City's Wall. Besides, Rose doesn't like sitting around and doing nothing."_

Spectre quickly faced his fiancée. "Hey! At least _I_ don't have to keep watch at the walls 24/7!"

 _"Because you were the privileged. The hero. Of course you wouldn't stick around as a Guard of the City's Wall."_ Vesper saw a badge sewn into his jacket's arms, a familiar two-headed bird holding the Titan's crest, which was the emblem of Titans that defended against the Darkness from any invaders and also on the Titans' version of the Crest of Alpha Lupi with the Roman numeral 'CDLI' at the bird's feet; the numeral for '451'. But on Spectre's jacket, the bird was carrying what appear to be the Raze-Lighter Spectre uses in its talons, and within the Titans' crest was a wolf's face; the wolf seen on the handle of the First Curse. A handcannon that was a gift from her on the day he was announced to be the spearhead to the Absolution Directive just days prior to her execution.

"Honestly, if you were alive, Rose, I don't want anyone to call you a coward."

 _"Why, daddy?"_

"Everyone always complains that the Hunters and Huntresses are cowards hiding behind their sniper rifles. And most of the time, it makes us Titans and Warlocks mad that when we don't realize it, we're already shot in the head by the time we see a red glow in the distance. Becomes a real pain if a team comprising of Titans and Warlocks are pitted against Hunters with sniper rifles."

 _"So you're saying I'm a coward?"_ crossing her arms, Vesper continued to stare at her fiancée for the insult to her class. _"Is it because I used a sniper rifle that you think I'm a coward?"_

"No, not you! I'm saying a majority of the Hunters and Huntresses I know and met in the Crucible are cowards!"

 _"Humph."_ Vesper threw her nose up towards the white sky, opening an eye to look at her daughter and winked.

Spectre looked down at himself, loathing saying such an offensive comment. He looked at his right hand, seeing the mark that the Right Hand had carved into the palm of his hand with his own knife. No doubt it will become a scar like his cheek. It was disgusting entirely, a snake of destruction slithering from the center of his palm to the back of his hand, a trail of crimson left behind in its wake. The mark resembled Oryx's emblem, and the trail made could've marked him as another to be Taken. Just like the Right Hand.

"How am I here, Vesper? I should be alive and in the Dreadnaught, rotting and probably on the verge of death."

 _"You're still on the Dreadnaught, Spectre,"_ Vesper snapped out of her 'pouting' and looked over at her fiancée, remorse clear in her emerald orbs, _"Your body is still hanging in your cell, but your mind is here. With me."_

"How is that─?"

 _"Don't you remember anything, Spectre? What caused you to be here?"_

"…Not much. All I remember was stopping at five hundred and fifty three and a Hive worm in my ear."

 _"The Right Hand was still continuing to stab and beat you to submission. To break you. But your pride and fortitude kept you from being broken…until he found out about me and my death."_ She saw Spectre press a palm to his forehead, trying to recall it all, _"He kept on torturing you, this time breaking you with the one thing you never wished happened. He kept taunting you, playing hallucinations of my death over and over. It was effective, and he was close to breaking you completely… Until I intervened. I found out that in order for a Guardian to become Taken, their Light had to be diminished and broken mentally. Your Light was fading away, but your consciousness was on the verge of being lost."_

"So you saved my consciousness, and why I'm here."

 _"Remember, I was different. I had the gifts of the Umbra and Lumen in my blood. Among you and the others like you, I was an outcast compared to you, Lightning, Cloud and Aqua. A freak in my own abilities,"_ she threw herself into his arms, on the verge of crying. But no tears were shed. _"Compared to the rest, you and the kazoku accepted me and Leon. You didn't see me as a freak."_

Spectre, looking at his fiancée in his arms and then their daughter, held her tightly and kissed her on the forehead. "'See, you can't fly if you never try.' Didn't you tell me that long ago?" he let her sob on his shoulder, gently running his scarred hand against her silky hair. "I wasn't like the others back then. You remember that I was expected to follow in the footsteps of my own father. But I didn't. Because I'm not like my father."

 _"A choice that you and you alone made."_

The gentle breeze kicked up a few notches, the gracefully swaying flowers of the field coming to a dead halt despite the wind being a little stronger. The ambiance of the field changed to a more serious tone than one of reunion and rejoice, as some of the wilted flowers revitalized themselves instantaneously. Spectre, with his fiancée still in his arms, looked up at Rose, whose face was filled with joy. Curious, he looked in the direction she was looking at and he was greeted to a surprise.

"Father…! Mother!"

 _"Grandma! Grandpa!"_

Standing before the Sunbreaker was his parents. Both of them had different shades of blonde hair; a dirty blonde for his father and a pure golden blonde with his mother, and their eyes were the same blue. His father, in heavy armor much unlike a Titan's and a tattered and torn cape replacing the Mark, had a hardened look much like Zavala's and stood with his hands behind his back, looking at his son with pride hidden in his eyes. As for his wife, in robes similar to a Warlock's armor, she was clearly happy to see her son and gave a warm motherly smile.

 _"What are you doing on your ass? You're my son, and this is how you honor me?"_ Spectre's father extended a hand for him to hold. Vesper got out of his embrace and Spectre took the offer, getting back up on his feet. Both the Sunbreaker and his father looked at each other in the eye as though they had never met before. However, Spectre acknowledged that this man in heavy armor was indeed his father.

Spectre's mother, after a few seconds, broke up the father-and-son moment and hugged her son tightly. _"I'm glad to see you again, Nero. My darling boy."_

Nero. That name sent a shiver of nostalgia down his spine. No one called him that since he was born. Instead, he had gone under a different name as soon as he was in his mother's arms after he was born. He remembered the times when his mother would call him 'Nero' instead of his name 'Sparda'. Until her death when he would be considered five years old pre-Golden Age-wise. A wave of emotions coursed over him, and he hugged his mother almost immediately.

"How are you two here? I thought you were─"

 _"Executed? Died from an incurable sickness? Respectively, I may add?"_ Spectre's father pined, looking over at his daughter-in-law and granddaughter and nodding. _"I suppose you can thank your wife-to-be for saving our souls from disappearing from this world. If it weren't for her gift, you and her would have never been this way, and your mother and I wouldn't be here."_

 _"Trionus, dear. I think that's enough before you go too deep into your infamous 'trance'."_

 _"Thank you, Lotus,"_ Trionus saw the carved mark on his son's hand, then his earlier scar and his expression turned dark at the drop of a hat. _"Nero, are you just going to let a Guardian corrupted by the Taken King just beat you to submission? I can understand your scar being a result of your hesitation, but the one in your hand?"_

"So? I know I've let you down. Some son I turned out to be."

 _"If it was any of the ones the Cyphers were expecting, then yes, you would've let them down. But not me."_ Nero looked up, and Trionus put a hand on his shoulder, _"You made your own path, and for once, I'm proud of your choice. You didn't want to follow in my footsteps, and I know why. I was a disgrace to us all."_

"I never wanted the position I'm in, father. I wanted to be a normal Guardian, not one that has been exiled because of a simple wrong you caused almost a hundred years ago."

 _"I know that. Your mother told me of how badly you wanted to be a Guardian. But really, you can't run from your bloodline. It's something that will be on your shoulders, dragging you across the dirt until you accept your birthright. Even if it comes with a price."_

"Don't you regret it? Accepting a curse and turning your back on the very gift you were born with and replacing it with that same curse?"

Trionus looked at his son, the wise question burning in both his words and his gaze. Never in Trionus's life has he been asked that question by anyone he knew. Not in a long time, anyway. _"…I do, Nero. Like you, I had to live with a regret like how a man with regrets dies. Not only do they burn in their last moments among the living, but their regrets burn them for eternity. And believe me, that regret is still with me. In the afterlife."_

"But the Cyphers, they─!"

 _"The hell with the Cyphers, for all I care!"_ bellowed Trionus, and Nero remained silent, shutting his mouth. _"Honestly, I hated them. Thinking they can take my rule among our people. A clan that_ you _, as my son, should be ruling as of now after my death! They usurped your rightful place, and for what? Fear that you will destroy our hopes of returning home?!"_

 _"Trionus, that's enough!"_ Lotus quelled her husband's impending anger, an angry black Solar flare enveloping his gauntlet until he released the tension. _"I know how much you hate them for executing you. Nero hates them for forcing him to execute our daughter and granddaughter. Please, be calm…"_

Nero looked up at the featureless white sky, and then back at his arm with the badge of the Crest of Alpha Lupi. "Do I really have what it takes to break free? Free from the bond that chained me down from the moment Lightning and I was born?"

 _"Nero, as much as we know that once we step into our path, there is no coming back. We must press on, no matter what. You have more than enough to forge your own path. Continue on that path, and you won't be stopped. Make the most of it, but never shy away from your heritage. Protect everyone that matters, and if you have to, let go of something to save another. I know it will be hard for someone like you, to let go of something to preserve another. But should it ever rise, just don't regret it all."_

 _"And speaking of life,"_ Vesper interrupted, the white sky warping away and revealing the cell Spectre was in the real world. The door leading to the cell was opened, and in came in the Right Hand. He was slowly striding towards Spectre, as another came into view. It showed Lightning and the _kazoku_ , along with Rez, Silver and Reaper being surrounded by the Taken. _"I can't keep you here much longer. He'll find a way to get in. Even worse, the Taken's advancing on everyone else: Lightning, Cloud, Leon, Aqua, even your Fireteam and your friends. It's only a matter of time until they're vanquished, robbed of their Light."_

 _"Daddy…"_ Rose clung to his leg, horrified at the events unfolding above them. _"I'm scared…"_

As for the Sunbreaker, his fist clenched, his freshly scarred hand bleeding as his nails dug into his wounds. "I won't let it happen…"

Trionus walked next to his son, hands behind his back and looking up at the scenes unfolding. _"Even if it comes with a terrible price? One that could cost your reputation?"_

"I don't care. If Oryx or his forces tries to take my friends and family away from me, I will show no mercy to them all."

As sudden as the wilted flowers revitalized themselves, the flowers yet to bloom rapidly bloomed as well, their original colors changing to black as a result. Not only did those flowers bloom and change color, but Spectre's eyes changed back to the sinister gold color he loathed seeing again.

 _"Nero, honey, are you sure you have the strength to carry out such a mission?"_

"Yes."

 _"Are you saying that you finally accept your bloodline, my son? One that you have been pushing back for so long?"_ his father pined.

"…No, I'm not saying that I accept my heritage, father."

Trionus didn't even flinch when Spectre quickly whipped around and aimed his customized handcannon at him. Lotus wanted to get Nero to put the gun down, but her husband gestured her to stand down. Vesper took Rose in her embrace and turned her away from the scene in case Spectre would put a bullet in his father's skull. The barrel was in his face, and his finger was on the trigger ready to fire. His stolid face only stared in the gun barrel, then back at his son in the eyes. The wind whipped up around the Sunbreaker, his jacket and eye-covering bangs whistling in the wind wildly.

"I'm saying that I can surpass you. In fact, Lightning and I already surpassed you. I will never become you, but I will walk my own path. Away from the one you took. I don't want to repeat what you did long ago."

 _"Even if it means losing everything you've gotten so far?"_

"I'm not going to lose everything," Nero pushed Skyfall closer to his father's face. He never knew his father, but for some reason, it felt _right_ to point a gun at him. Was he…turning into something he feared? Is his bloodline finally getting to him? "I'll make Oryx lose everything. I'll make sure of it. Even if I have to sacrifice myself."

Trionus, at the small speech his son delivered to him, only faintly smiled. _"That will do… Spectre."_ He gestured him to pull the trigger, but it was only now that he saw Spectre's handcannon-holding hand start to quiver. He knew that Spectre would never shoot his own family, Trionus included. _"Why are you hesitating?"_

"Vesper, I need to know… If I shoot my father here and now, will I never see him again?"

Vesper turned as soon as her fiancée asked that question, still covering Rose's eyes if he was planning to shoot his father. _"No. Spectre, the Trionus before you is his regrets that he carried with him when he died manifested in his image. You won't kill your father, but you can put his soul to rest by killing his regrets. Just like me, your father will always be with you. Lotus, Trionus, Rose and I will always be with you."_

Nero lowered Skyfall to his side, looking at the weapon. He opened the cylinder. Only one bullet was left. "Father, if you can hear me now, here's to you being freed from your regrets." He slammed the cylinder back in and pointed the barrel at his father's manifested regrets. "Even though I was born after you were executed by the Cyphers, I know you're not the kind of man to die with regrets. So, forgive me. Because these are your Last Words, not mine."

Nero's mother approved of her son's farewell to his father's regrets, a tear falling as her son will finally free his father from his torment in the afterlife. Spectre turned to face his fiancée, who nodded and smiled all the same as his mother. Soon enough, he redirected his attention to his father's regrets, hand no longer quivering but tight enough to handle the insane recoil one-handed. _Inhale, count to four… Exhale, count to four…_

 _"Daddy!"_ Rose broke free from her mother's hold and ran up to her father, forcing him to remove his finger from the trigger and face his daughter. _"Are you going to say good-bye to us?"_

Spectre knelt down to level with Rose's eyesight, ruffling her hair. "Yeah. I don't belong in this world. I belong with the living. My time's not up yet."

Rose reached for something behind her neck, lifting a small chain up and over her head. Quickly, she presented the chained item in her small hands. A necklace, with a beautiful sapphire colored tear-shaped crystal similar to the rose-shaped crystal he has. _"Here, daddy! I want you to have this, so you won't forget me and mommy!"_

"Rose… Thank you." Nero took the pendant from her hands, putting down Skyfall and hugging her. "I won't forget you and mommy. You two are what matters to me." He kissed Rose tenderly on her forehead before Vesper took her back. Quickly, he picked up Skyfall and returned to where he was, aiming it back at Trionus's face once again.

 _Bang!_

One shot was all it took.

Nero's father recoiled back from the shot to the head, falling into the flowers back-first just as his body succumbed to the shot it took. A pool of blood flowed like a broken dam from his wound to the flowers, staining them red. After accepting that he shot his own father, Spectre lowered Skyfall to his side once more, cocking the hammer and putting it in his holster. The blood from Trionus's corpse soon spread all across the field, coloring all of the flowers red.

 _"Tha…nk you…"_ Trionus managed to give a farewell to his son before fading away like a ghost. _"You made me proud. Don't forget it."_

Following his father's passing was his mother, who only smiled as she started to fade away to let Spectre go back to the world of the living. _"Thank the Traveler that you and your sister was a blessing to your father and I. You give them hell, Nero. I love you, honey, and don't let your enemies stop you."_

 _"Bye, daddy! I'll see you again!"_ Rose waved as she too started to fade to nothing, melting Spectre's cold heart at the innocence his daughter has.

 _"Go out there and make us proud. Remember: we're always with you, no matter where you are."_ Vesper's cloak fluttered about as she faded away, turning around and walking away to join her parents-in-law and daughter.

The white light from the sky had become blocked by the red from the blood-colored field like the sky had turned red, the only one left letting the turn of events in the field occur. An aura from the roots of the flowers started creeping its way towards Nero, hungry in its motion. It consumed him whole, but it didn't bring him back to reality instantly. The Sunbreaker stood stagnant, the black smoke-like mist consuming him and blotting out the red in his jacket and shirt.

His hair changed color, a dirty blonde faded to a darker shade of his current color instantly. He opened his eyes, and no longer was there a steel blue-gray. Instead, the golden eyes he had possessed earlier and in his hallucinations had taken over. For good.

"I am…the son of the Disgraced One, Trionus."

* * *

 _Damned Guardians! How_ dare _they humiliate me!?_ The Right Hand painfully walked towards the unconscious body of Spectre, clutching his side as it bled large amounts of goo. First he was overpowered by that damned Fireteam using only swords and sorcery just as he was about to eliminate Dmitri and his team, then the most pathetic Fireteam in the Tower eliminated an Echo?! His power began to slip from his fingers, and he needed _more_ for his loss. More Light to Take. That Fallen Warlock provided so much Light, but it was completely unsatisfactory to his hunger. Nor did his absorption of a shard of the Echo as it died.

 _Light… I need Light!_ He dared to not go back out there. Even if he managed to retreat, that's not stopping four extremely skilled and powerful Guardians from pursuing him. Hell, they're right outside the door leading to the Hanging Crypts! Thankfully, he was able to prevent them from getting close to their precious Sunbreaker's cell and use the Taken as a barrier and roadblock.

"Bad news, Spectre. It's been fun, but I'm afraid your time is up." He stood before the hanging Sunbreaker, just waking up and breathing. "Your beloved sister and friends are closing in, and I'm going to enjoy making them suffer. I many not have been able to take Dmitri and his friends' Light away, but at least I can Take your friends'." The Right Hand withdrew his hand from his bleeding side, watching as Spectre weakly moved his head. "You've been a nuisance to my Liege, and now it's time to say goodbye." He stretched his hand toward's Spectre's chest, the Taken membrane growing and growling in his palm. Under his corrupted Helm of Inmost Light, he grinned sadistically. With just a simple act, he could end the life of his King's most hated enemy, he could strike fear into the Guardians' hearts; he could─

 _"I will not allow it!"_

His hand stopped mere inches from touching the Sunbreaker, the membrane 'screaming' in agony. His outstretched hand burned like he put his hand in a pool of lava, and he pulled it back the parasite dripping from his fingers like goo. Growling, he looked up at his captive.

Instead of a Titan, he was face to face with his captive's only weakness that took the form of a Huntress, unbeaten and unbruised. She raised her head and looked at the Right Hand straight in the eyes, a fire that was protection and love burning in them.

 _"You foolish Right Hand. You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into now!"_

Amused by this, the Right Hand began to cackle uncontrollably. _So, she appears to me for the first time. Why now of all times…? No matter._ "So, it appears you still have some strength left in you, huh?" he pulled out a corrupted version of Spectre's Raze Lighter, summoning more of the Taken membrane and fusing it to the blade. "Good. _It'll be a pleasure to break you as you die with a last regret!_ " He thrust the sword forward.

However, a sickening _crrraaacck_ rang in the cell, and all his sword stabbed was thin air.

 _What?!_ A tightness wrapped around his neck, and immediately he dropped the sword. His hands clawed at whatever was around his neck, and his gauntleted fingers felt a hard Hive material.

"Why don't you break this?"

 _~Oh can you tell me,_

 _Can you tell me,_

 _The way that this should work~_

The Hive material finally snapped, and a shadow somersaulted over the Right Hand. It landed in front of him, facing away from the Taken King's general. Somehow, the metal-like material didn't kill the Right Hand immediately, since he was still breathing. His teeth grinded against each other, and his breathing became heavy.

"How did you─?! You're _supposed to be dying!_ " Somehow, the Sunbreaker had broken free from the chains, moving like he was never injured at all! Something wasn't right… And the most disgusting bit of it all? The broken bones that were sticking out of his flesh were all pushed out of his body in the most painful way possible. Yet, he didn't flinch or fall at all, his exposed flesh healing at a rapid rate.

"…How disgusting," Nero wiped his mouth with his arm, spitting out something. His tone wasn't like his normal tone, but rather of a Guardian close to either losing their voice or slipping to insanity.

 _~Just who's inside of me?_

 _The monster pulling strings,_

 _I'm broken, lying, helpless, dying,_

 _Surrounded by the world~_

The Right Hand, outraged at what Spectre said, only felt something wet run down the side of his head. He pressed his fingers against it and brought it to his sight. His eyes widened at what was on it. A black substance, the Taken's equivalent of blood. For the first time since he was resurrected by Oryx, he was starting to feel fear. After all this time, he thought he could strike fear in the hearts of many, but now, he was starting to feel quite the opposite.

"What did you do?! You _bit me_!" The question of how Spectre could be able to tear off a chunk of his helmet and bite through resonated in his head. It was impossible for someone to do all of that within a few seconds!

"Yeah, and your Darkness is disgusting. It tastes just like rotten meat."

Nero dodged a tendril of Taken energy that formulated around Samson's arm, leaping up and twisting around to make sure it never hits him. From the air, he fell towards the Taken King's general, ready to kick him square in the face.

 _~And yet, you're smiling bright,_

 _When you don't see a thing~_

Unfortunately, Samson had blocked the attack and caught Nero's leg, grasping it with both hands. "I got you now!" he proceeded to twist it, feeling satisfied by the sound of flesh being popped and twisted. Blood exploded everywhere, landing on both the Right Hand's armor and Spectre's.

"As if." In spite of the pain of having his leg twisted, he went along with it and spun, striking the general in the face with his free leg. The resulting kick sent the general flying towards one of the walls in Spectre's cell, a crater left behind on impact and a heavy dust cloud obscured the area where Samson was.

The Sunbreaker landed on his good leg, using his twisted leg's heel to counterbalance the loss. In an instant, his leg began to twist again, spinning around until his leg was back to normal. For Nero, it was nothing. The years of being under the Cyphers' impossible training made him resist the pain as such. For the average Guardian, the pain of having your leg twisted around like a wet rag would be unworldly. But to Nero? It was only like an itch.

"After all the pain you caused, everything you've done… You think _that_ can hurt me?"

 _~My raptured lungs, and I'm breaking down,_

 _Unraveled, I can't breathe,_

 _The truth I seek never felt so bleak,_

 _I feel it drop degrees,_

 _Freeze~_

The Right Hand emerged from the crater and the smoke screen-like cloud of dust, clearly pissed off. The tendril started going wild as it was latched on to his arm like a leech, and Spectre sensed it. As for the Taken King's general, he removed his broken helmet, revealing a face that looked just like Vesper's on the day she was corrupted, just with the Taken membrane this time. "Kill you…! I'll kill you! I swear it!" the tendril enveloped his entire back, the black and blue color of the Taken adding more to his menacing appearance by forming leg-like tendrils along his back and his arm swallowed by the tendril, becoming more or less of a whip-like extension. "Your Light is mine! I'll tear you to shreds!"

However, Nero only smirked evilly at the empty threat the Right Hand made. As if to further provoke him, he bent his left hand's ring finger with his thumb on top of the middle joint before pressing down on it. A satisfying cracking noise rang out, and he watched the rage build up in the Right Hand. _Does he really think I'm intimidated that easily? Tch, pathetic words for a pathetic man._

"I'll break all of your bones!"

 _I'd like to see you try._

 _~Breakable, unbreakable_

 _Shakable, unshakable_

 _Was shaking up until I found you~_

The Right Hand blindly charged towards Nero, corrupted Raze Lighter back in his possession. Just as he was mere inches away from colliding with the Titan, he swung both his whip-like arm and sword. Spectre moved out of the way like it was a lazily thrown dish, and when Samson kept on swinging his weapons, the Sunbreaker effortlessly danced around the attacks without getting grazed by either one, increasing the rage and frustration further with each blow he evades.

 _Why do I feel so…alive? Am I really enjoying torturing and taunting my enemy because he can't land a damned blow on me?!_ Inside, it felt like a war was raging on inside him. One side was of his dignity and honor as a Titan, and the other was of his bloodline, cruel to the enemy yet satisfying once it was all over. The two sides were in deadlock, canceling out the other's influences and pulling Spectre apart. But it seems to him, his bloodline was already winning.

Eventually, Nero had enough of dodging Samson's attacks and stood in place, provoking the corrupted Guardian to hit him just by standing there. And he fell for it. Samson struck with his whip arm first, then swinging his sword diagonally. Ducking the whip and leaning to the side in succession, Nero took a step forward and struck him in the lower of his ribcage, just above the liver. His fist was no longer infused with Solar energy, but a more powerful force had taken over its place.

The Right Hand started to growl tauntingly at the apparently 'weak' punch Spectre threw at him, laughing since he let his guard down. His tendril arm grabbed Spectre from behind, enveloping him in its grasp before flinging him across the cell like the Sunbreaker was a ball of paper. Karma came back to the Sunbreaker as he was thrown into the wall, what he did to Samson done to him.

 _~I'm standing here watching the world as it falls around me,_

 _You're so close, but I hope that you stop searching,_

 _I don't want you to see what I've become,_

 _A fading no one,_

 _I don't want to hurt you, it's not my nature,_

 _A monster born from dusk to dawn can't be your savior,_

 _I'm falling victim, remember the 'me', the way I used to be~_

The Right Hand breathed heavily after throwing his prisoner against the wall, satisfied yet uncontent. Taking his sword, he reversed his grip on it and threw it in the direction of the Titan. A surge of pain coursed through his chest, tearing up his insides like someone had plunged a knife in it and stabbed repeatedly. _That power…! Just what is it?!_ He grasped the region where Spectre had delivered the punch and looked at his palm. A substance was there, not his blood nor the Taken membrane. It was black as oil, but the texture had the appearance of smoke.

His attention was pulled from his inspection of the substance towards the wall where Spectre was pinned to. Emerging from the dust was said Titan, the sword impaled in his chest yet standing as if it didn't impale him in the first place. Their eyes met, and it was now that Samson saw that his victim's eyes were completely different. Inside them was a raging anger, carving its way into the remains of the Taken Guardian's soul.

"Not too bad…" Nero reached for the hilt of the sword, then violently yanking it out. He was lucky enough that the sword didn't go through his heart, otherwise it would've been all in vain. Although he'll give the Right Hand credit for trying to actually kill him. With the sword out of his chest, he snapped it in two and tossed the halves away. "But I can do better."

He took in the Right Hand's expression and cracked his fingers again, this time with his middle finger. Behind him the shadows started to move, making their way towards him just the same in the field he had seen Vesper again. _Never have I wanted to accept this power… I saw what it did to my people, especially the ones who gave in to it. Lightning accepted hers, so is it time that I do my part?_ He remembered it all: seeing his peers and family all accept their bloodline. Everyone but him. He saw no point in accepting or even using his, so he pushed it away for fifty years now. The mist-like shadows clustered around his back, and what unfolds shocked the Right Hand.

Samson watched as the dark mist suddenly materialize into four shapes, rooting themselves in the Titan's back. All four were black as his armor and the night sky, and they were all shaped like tendrils. At the end of those tendrils were blade-like appendages, razor-sharp from the looks of it. Some of the mist soon enveloped Nero's recently scarred hand, turning it into a clawed form of itself and enveloping his arm up to the elbow, a spike forming on his elbow. Soon enough, it took a draconic appearance, the shadow being an encasing of his real arm. The remaining shadows hovered right behind Nero's back, forming a visible spirit looming over his shoulders in the form of a dragon. It roared, the soundwaves visible as ripples in the air.

 _~The endless pain of solitude,_

 _Wraps tight around my fortitude,_

 _The happy days pierce into me,_

 _These lonely memories cease to care,_

 _Innocently they pierce through~_

The Right Hand roared back at the golden eyed Guardian, and already did Spectre make the first attack. He leapt up above the Right Hand with the help of his tendrils, lunging straight towards him with his draconic hand outreached. The Right Hand blocked the clawed hand with his tendril-wrapped arm, then blocking the barrage of attacks from the upper half of Spectre's tendrils and the rest suspending him mid-air. Roaring angrily, the Right Hand threw a barrage of his own at the suspended Sunbreaker, to which said Titan effortlessly evaded like he did on his feet. Soon enough, the Taken tendrils had somehow cut through the materialized shadows, bringing the Tower's champion down to the ground. But not before the half that was attacking Samson slammed him to the ground.

 _~I can't move,_

 _I can't move,_

 _I can't move,_

 _I can't move,_

 _I can't move_

 _I can't move!_

 _Unraveling the world~_

Nero landed on his feet, his lower tendrils going wild before 'screaming' and started to cause smoke-like shadows to emerge from the cut wounds. Two more of the same tendrils grew in the original's place, sharper and more deadlier and adding up to a total of six of the materialized shadows. Inside, he knew his honor and dignity died out as soon as he became more exposed to his bloodline, leaving the cruelty dominant. It trampled on its 'weak' opponent upon its victory, crushing its chances of living to fight another day and killing it off. Spectre knew he never wanted that part of him to be dominant. It was why he pushed it away, both his heritage and abilities. Not only did everyone he knew before he came to the Tower accept their abilities and separate heritages, but he saw what became of the generation before his own. The last generation, his father included, fell to the void of their abilities' temptation turning even the most honored and dignified into monsters. Monsters that have lost all sight of the right and thirsted for more power.

 _No, once someone submits to that power, they will never come back. All they become are shells of their former selves; gone are their senses of the right thing._

However, Samson quickly got back up and lunged towards the leader of the Ancient Vanguard more enraged than before. He swung wildly with his tendril-wrapped arm and his tendrils behind him started focusing on the six shadow tendrils. Spectre snapped out of his thoughts and ducked and dodged the swung tendrils aimed at him, but the same couldn't be said for his own tendrils. All of them were cut off in a rapid succession, but more 'grew' back from six to ten to fourteen. No matter how many tendrils were cut off, all of them grew more deadlier blades. Within thirty seconds, the number of materialized shadow tendrils multiplied to a grand total of thirty, all of the bladed ends more jagged and hooked for maximum damage. Even Spectre's draconic-like arm started to turn sharper with each tendril cut off, his clawed fingers starting to have jagged edges and hooks at the end.

Eventually, Spectre had enough of dodging his opponent's blows and ducked the instant the giant Taken membrane-turned-tendrils covered arm swung at him. Enclosing his draconic hand, the son of the Disgraced One channeled his bloodline's power into his hand, a black aura much like the black Solar flare in his father's clenched hand and when he took out the Echo back in the Cosmodrome enclosing it and released the tension before clawing his way up.

The Right Hand screamed agonizingly as half of his arm─both his actual arm and the Taken tendril─was torn by Spectre's draconic claw-hand, recoiling in pain as the black blood oozed out in a flood, followed by the tendril spilling itself in a goo-like form. Taking the moment as an opening, Spectre leapt up. All thirty of his tendrils formed as one, their appearance making a wings-like shadow before they all slammed the Right Hand into the ground, leaving a crater with him.

 _~There's something deep inside of me,_

 _Yet everything's changing,_

 _A change was made, I can't break free,_

 _The Darkness and the Light collide,_

 _They fade away before they've begun,_

 _Breakable, unbreakable,_

 _Shakable, unshakable,_

 _These dirty hands know they won't touch you~_

"Who's the pathetic one now?" taunted Trionus's son once the dust settled, his upper left tendrils acting in unison as he commanded them to attack.

Samson let out a cry of pain as the tendrils impaled his good arm, the blades digging into both his armor and flesh corrupted by the Taken. The pain was far beyond what he went through back when he was still a Guardian of the Light, and it was just the same as the Echo's fate: the combination of being disintegrated, burned and shocked alive.

Painfully, he looked back at the Sunbreaker, who had already went to cracking his index finger. He knew Spectre, back when he was under the Vanguard and before his transition to being a hero, was seen as the hotshot that was too powerful for his own good because of his guts and dumb luck. And he knew Spectre's signature habit of cracking his ring to his index fingers. The action alone just screamed out 'time to die'. And that was exactly what the Sunbreaker was saying in his head every time he did his habit.

 _How can this be?! The power I possess, the power to kill all the Traveler's pawns…only to be beaten by a power that doesn't belong to the Light?! How can a Guardian of the Traveler possess such terrible power!?_ His mind screamed, even though he was crying out in pain as of now. "You…can't…be…"

 _~I'm standing here watching the world as it falls around me,_

 _You're so close, but I hope that you stop searching,_

 _I don't want you to see what I've become,_

 _A fading no one,_

 _I'm trapped in this cage the world created,_

 _Held into place by someone crazy shall melt away like dawn to day as thing get hazy_

 _I'm falling faster, remember who I was~_

"One thousand minus seven." Nero uttered, reminding the Right Hand of what he said the moment he started torturing the Sunbreaker. The Taken General glanced back at the Guardian, teeth gritted upon hearing his favored method of torture. His eyes widened in fear, not wanting to acknowledge his defeat despite his face showing it.

"Go…to…hell…!"

"Wrong answer," Spectre sent his lower left half out to attack in unison once more, this time digging into his victim's calf. Grinning evilly upon hearing Samson cry in agony once again, he let the tendrils proceed to torture the Taken General with his own blades. "I'm waiting for an answer, you traitorous piece of shit. What's one thousand minus seven?"

Samson stalled at his response and Spectre impaled another set of jagged and hooked tendrils into his other calf, the other impaled set removed and plunging itself back in the exact same spot. He cried in unworldly agony at the bladed tendrils entering his flesh at the same time. The feeling of having jagged and hooked blades digging in your flesh was the worst imaginable coming from the method of torturing a victim with blades, and Samson was a clear victim to it all.

"I can keep this up all day." Another stalled response, and Spectre sent the remaining set into his dismembered arm, which still had traces of the Taken tendrils enveloping his arm. A heavy stomp to his spine followed immediately after the impalement, and Samson screamed like a pig ready for the slaughter when the tendrils on his back were violently ripped off in a gruesome fashion. He looked back and saw the ghost of a dragon looming behind the Sunbreaker proceed to devour the ripped off tendrils hungrily and ravenously, almost as if it never ate for many thousands of years.

 _~Remember who I once was,_

 _Please don't forget me,_

 _You can't forget me,_

 _You won't forget me,_

 _Please don't forget me~_

"Nine hundred…ninety-three… Nine hundred…eighty-six…" the Right Hand submitted to his situation, giving in to his situation. The ghostly dragon had finished his meal and stared down at the defeated Taken Guardian, then at its master with its own set of golden eyes. "Nine hundred…nine hundred…seventy-nine…!"

Nero looked down at his draconic-like arm, flexing his fingers about until he clenched it into a fist. _So what do you think, Dragunus? Let this filth live, or kill him here and now?_ He just didn't know who he was anymore. The same Spectre that had been driven with grief and still became a hero to the Last City, or what his father became. Yet somehow, he knew this spirit of a dragon. Like they were brothers. His golden eyes never faltered in glowing evilly. And its message? No more does the Light reside in the son of the Disgraced One, for now he accepted power far more powerful than Light with its cost.

 _ **Kill.**_ Dragunus affirmed in Spectre's thoughts, setting the verdict and sentence for their victim.

… _Very well, then. Death it is._

 _~There's no turning back now, I know I'm paralyzed,_

 _I'm trapped inside this paradise, and with this parasite,_

 _I'm falling victim,_

 _Remember who I was, the way I used to be~_

"Nine hundred…seventy…two! Nine hundred…sixty-five," Samson continued to count down while both the blades and pain that the Echo suffered went on and on. A tear shed from his eyes, the pain completely unbearable.

His torture victim-turned-torturer watched on at the pathetic weakling known as the Right Hand, enjoying every _second_ of the agony and suffering. His expression turned from a cruel, sadistic torturer to an expressionless one much like a statue's own. He didn't choose to accept his power, but if he had to live to fight another day, it was the only option left. His Light was mostly gone, but he managed to survive with the power of his father.

"Remember, you were the one who tried to break me first," he reminded, cracking his index finger again, this time bending the rest of the finger into his palm. He then tapped the right side of his head, tilting it towards the side as he cracked his finger for the last time.

"W…what are…you?!" Samson demanded, stopping his counting and looking over his shoulders. He screamed as the tendrils impaled him again, proving his suspicions through the sudden cruelty inside the Vanguard's greatest Titan.

"It's not _what_ you should be concerned about. It's _who_."

"That power… It can't be!"

"Took you this long to figure it out? I'm offended," Nero taunted, the dragon over his shoulders watching Samson writhe and squirm under the pain caused by the bladed tendrils and snarling down at him.

"But he's…! He's _dead_!"

"What a no-brainer, smartass. Because honestly, just because the Disgraced One died almost seventy-three years ago doesn't mean it was impossible for my birth."

 _~Oh, won't you tell,_

 _Oh please, tell me,_

 _Just who's inside of me?~_

At long last, the Hive worm that the Taken General had put in Nero's ear fell out, falling straight into his waiting draconic hand. The Hive work was covered in his blood, moving faintly as though it was on the brink of dying. His ear felt like the Hive worm never entered it at all, and he knew that it was thanks to his powers. And if it could scream, it would've right now as the son of the Disgraced One crushed it in his clawed hand. Hive blood exploded in his hand, away from Nero's face and dripping down his hand onto the Taken General's face.

He already grew bored of looking at the terror in the Taken General's corrupted face, and it was time to deliver the verdict and sentence.

Samson watched as the golden glow in both Spectre and his ghost-like dragon's eyes grow sinisterly brighter, and the shadows from the rest of the cell move like waterfalls towards the Sunbreaker. _Is this… How I'll die again?! By a hotshot of the Tower that weaseled his way to glory? You gotta be kidding me…!_

"So you'll get what's coming to you…"

 _~The monster pulling strings~_

"When I break you instead."

And so ended the life of the general of the Taken forces.

* * *

 **Wow. Just... Wow. Never have I written over at least 5k (excluding chapters 6(?)-7(?) my original** _ **Skyfall 007: Mission Start**_ **. That was a pathetic excuse of a fanfic in my book) in recent times, but cramming all of this in one chapter was my main motivation. Now, I know what you're thinking: 'You can't be serious! You're going to end it here!? Even when we haven't reached the** _ **Enemy of my Enemy**_ **mission in** _ **The Taken King**_ **?!' Who said I was gonna end it here? Besides, you may have to thank The Crimson Commando for covering that mission (indirectly, but whatever). Also, as a homage to most anime shows I've seen, they never go past 12 episodes for one season. It sucks, but whatever.**

 **And trust me, this was just 'season one' (or the first arc of the story if you want it put that way) of my** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **fic. I already have season two planned out to finish up the rest of** _ **The Taken King**_ **, but this is where I have to put it to an end as of now. Because I'm uncertain whether to continue season two/second arc in the same story or make an individual one. By the time I posted this chapter, I already made the poll for you, the reader, to decide where you want me to start for season two. Not only have I made the poll, but I also have a YouTube playlist ready for your listening leisure. Just look at my profile! I think you'll find it quite satisfying, my choice of music for the characters' themes (including 'Writing's on the Wall' as the 'title song' for this fic).**

 **As for my poll, it'll be open until the end of April. So don't worry about the time limit its open! Go ahead and vote! Also, thank you all so much for… *Jaw drops upon seeing the number of views* 2,368 views?! Wow, not even five months and this accumulated this many reads?! Looking at my archives, this puts** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **in second place (behind** _ **Skyfall 007: Mission Start**_ **by 139 views) in views, but clearly tramples over the latter in the number of favorites and follows within five months! Thank you guys so much for all of this!**

 **Unfortunately, this is where we will go our separate ways…for now.**

 **But don't worry.**

 **Spectre, Nero Bianco, Reaper, and the rest of the** _ **kazoku**_ **will be back to fight another day in the next season. For now, it's their time off.**

 **Thanks for reading, and we'll all see you in season two!**


	13. II-I: Angel, Angel, What Have I Done?

_**Season II: Absolution**_

 _ **Chapter I: Angel, Angel, What Have I Done?**_

* * *

 _Hanging Crypts, Dreadnaught_

 _0527 Hours, December 4, 2714_

"You're sure it's here?"

"There's no doubt about it."

"Given that the Taken were a distraction and were so many in a given area, it's obvious that it had to be straight ahead."

A Fireteam of seven stood outside the door out in the Hanging Crypts of the Dreadnaught, all of them glancing upwards at the giant door before them. Surprisingly, there were no enemies in sight despite the chilling yet unnerving ambiance of the area. Hanging cells, the sound of chains clanging, and the eternal abyss below the bridge? Not a good combination at all. Four Ghosts hovered over three of the seven's shoulders, three of them scanning the area while the fourth illuminated the area around them. In the light of the Ghost illuminating the way, it revealed two Titans, three Hunters, and two Warlocks.

The Fireteam leader of the group, a Titaness clad in armor from the Trials of Osiris, kept her auto rifle at the ready and her finger resting on the trigger. In her helmet's visor, her eyes darted around for any possible sign of ambush. The enemy that she and the Fireteam were facing only a few minutes ago just vanished. Disappeared without a trace. _Why would the Taken just vanish here and now? Something doesn't add up…_ Meanwhile, two of the Hunters kept watch at the rear, keeping the rest in the middle of the formation.

Her only obligation was to find someone held captive here on the Dreadnaught. Honestly, she could care less about no one else outside the Fireteam. Her brother is all that matters. She made an oath to protect her younger twin brother, and it was why she became stronger.

Lightning could care less about her superiors giving her orders on the Absolution Directive.

The black-and-gold clad Titaness pressed one of her hands against the door, closing her eyes and focusing. Her tension lessened, and it was now she could sense what lies beyond the door. As soon as she focused, a spark surged through her arm, forcing her to recoil her arm back as though she touched an electrical wall. She wrapped her other hand around her wrist, massaging it from the pain she just took. _What the hell?!_

It was now that Lightning noticed a substance on the palm of her hand. It was black as oil, but looked like liquefied smoke. It dripped from her hand, pooling onto the bridge leading to the cell. She immediately knew what it was.

"Artemis, do you see anything on the other side of the door?!"

The Ghost that served as the Fireteam's source of light turned around to face her partner, shell opening and closing. **"…I can't. Something's jamming my scans. Sorry, Light."**

"This is the only place that the Taken could be guarding." The female Warlock noted, standing next to the Fireteam leader. "There's nowhere else they have Spectre captive."

"That, and the fact that this place hasn't been fully laid out yet? Doesn't help out a lot," added Silver-79, his Ghost Alpha scanning the door if there's a lock in place.

Lightning looked at the Exo Warlock and his human Hunter teammate, Rez. Both of them were in her brother's elite Fireteam known as Nero Bianco who had accomplished the near impossible and making it out alive. Hell, the trio were the Tower's heroes, the elite among the elite! She heard the stories of the Fireteam that took down Crota and Atheon─two of the Tower's greatest threats in Year 1─, but she thought it wouldn't be her own brother delivering the coup de grâce to both of them, nor only a three-man team completing it all!

 _And without using his powers… I'm surprised they haven't figured it out yet. Don't Ghosts pick up any signature of the Darkness?_ The Titaness pondered on her own question, glancing at the door and her substance-dripping hand. _But, he said he'd never use the power. Not in his life. Yet, why is_ this _here?_

"Do we have any explosives or something?" Leon muttered, gunblade out and resting on his shoulder.

 _"Bakuhatsubutsuga iku to omoi masu. Watashitachi ga mi te iru haibu sozai desu. Sore ha kakuhogo shaga sorera to hakobu ryoukin no hyoujunteki na ryouyori ooku wo toru tsumori desu._ I doubt explosives will work. This is Hive material we're looking at. It's gonna take more than the standard amount of charges each Guardian carries with them." Explained the other Titan, Cloud. He lifted his giant sword from his back, mimicking Leon.

Leon looked at the other side of the bridge the team of seven was on, seeing no signs of enemies so far. "Yeah, yeah. I doubt the Hive are gonna come after us right now."

 **"Uh, guys?"** the other Ghost over Lightning's shoulder, which looked exactly like Artemis but with a blue 'eye' instead of red, pined.

"What is it, Primus?"

 **"There's a strong signature right behind the door."**

"The assailant?"

Primus nodded 'no'. **"The signature's definitely not him. It's something else… Something…** _ **powerful**_ **."**

All seven turned their heads at the sound of stone grinding against metal. The door leading to the cell started to open slowly, the sound painful and worth an ear-bleeding if amplified a thousand times. Immediately, they all armed their weapons and the firearm-wielding Guardians had their eyes on the door while Cloud and Leon readied their blades. The only Huntress of the team readied her bow instead of her handcannon, the arrow burning with Void energy.

After what seemed to be an eternity, the door finally opened wide, and all seven walked in. Their weapons were lowered, but they all kept their guard up in the event of an ambush.

"I got a bad feeling about this," muttered Silver, optics darting around the hallway leading to the actual cell. The Hive statues towering over them gave the Exo shivers down his spine, and he knew he's not the only one feeling the same way.

"Don't jinx it, man. It's gonna get us killed." Rez responded, dual wielding both his Ace of Spades and Thorn and keeping an eye on the flank of the group. "Besides, studying with Triton might've given you his 'bad feeling' mumbo-jumbo."

"He's not the only one," Spectre's sister confirmed, keeping her Walther CP99 and combat knife at the ready. "Something's definitely not right." Her HUD reported everything, all thanks to a combined work between her sonic waves and Artemis's scanning. So far, nothing's wrong. But not her radar. For some reason, it was glitching out. One second there's a red slice on the edge, the next there's nothing. She's pretty sure that everyone else's radar was glitching out too, but she was the only one that noticed.

 _"…ight…"_

The Fireteam stopped in place before the door. In unison, they all aimed their weapons around the instant they heard that sound. Eerily, it sounded like a voice. All of their eyes/optics darted around the area, hoping to spot the source of the sound. There was no aura of the Taken's presence, nor a fogged up atmosphere.

 _"…ust… …evour…!"_

"What the hell was that?!"

"Don't look at me!"

 _"Liiight… I must devour!"_

The next thing the team of seven knew, they were all swept off their feet by a shockwave much like a Striker's Fist of Havoc. Without any time to react at all, they hit the ground and their weapons far from their reach. Their landings immobilized them, almost as if something pinned them down to the ground. The sound they were looking for, found them instead.

Lightning struggled to get back on her feet, and caught a glimpse of their attacker. Her legs felt like they weren't there, and she valiantly tried to stand. Instead, she fell to her knees. Her teeth grinded against the other, and behind her helmet, her eyes were mixed with shock and anger.

Soon enough, _something_ wrapped around her body and picked her up, then slamming her against the wall. On impact, she felt the oxygen was knocked out of her lungs, and she gasped deeply. Her oxygen chip was still intact, but the feeling of slamming back first against the wall felt like the opposite. She wasn't the only one that was caught by something, but also Rez, Silver, Leon and Aqua. The thing that wrapped around her found itself around her neck. She clawed at it to get it off, but to no avail. The others were doing the exact same thing, but failed as well.

 _The black substance, followed by this!? It can't be…!_

A humane snarling followed, followed by a battle cry-like roar. Following the human-like roar was another one, this time not as human. But of a dragon's. A burst of wind whipped through the area, and the dim lights in the cell gave their last spark before a ghostly glow took over.

"Spec…tre…!"

Below the five was her twin brother. But tendrils had protruded from his back and wrapped themselves around the five, and the ghost of a dragon loomed over his shoulders. Never before had she seen him accept his power before, but why did it have to be now of all times!? He hated it, yet here he is using it!

 _"Giiiiiive meeeee your Liiiiiiighhhttt!"_ roared Spectre, before letting some of the tendrils go and causing blades to appear. They impaled the five Guardians in their chests, digging in but not enough to kill them.

"Stop…! Spectre, it's me! Lightning!" Lightning cried out, feeling like her lungs were being violently ripped out of her chest. Unfortunately, her plea didn't help as much as she had her chest impaled again by the same tendril, causing her to cry out in pain. Desperately, her hands summoned Solar and Arc energy to try and snap her brother out of it. However, just as quickly as her Arcburn Strike activated, it faded to nothing. Soon enough, she felt like her ribs were being caving in and her organs in her chest were being ruptured. _I have to stop him before he devours our Light!_

However, her efforts were in vain as she grew weaker and weaker with each passing moment her hands eventually letting go of the tendrils around her neck. Her vision began to blur, and the mix of the known red alerts flashing in her eyes didn't help keep her conscious. She felt like slipping away, but why? _Is this…why the Cyphers didn't want me to go after him? Mother, I'm sorry… I couldn't keep my promise._ The tears she had held back finally dropped, letting her arms go limp as she accepted her fate. Death by her brother.

The dragon over Spectre's shoulders roared to the heavens, sounding satisfied as it drank away at the Light it was absorbing from the Guardians. Just a mere taste of it was addicting. It wanted _more_. The Taken membrane was an appetizer, and the Light was the main course. At last, Dragunus could relish in the Light's taste.

 _"Saita no, no hana yo,_ Wild flower, blossoming, _"_ another source of light illuminated the area, and immediately did the berserk-state Spectre turn his attention. The tendrils let go of the five Guardians, freeing them from having their Light further drained.

A blue water-like light surrounded the Huntress known as Reaper who approached the MIA Sunbreaker and sang. Her voice was just as divine as the most beautiful songstress in existence, and she extended her arms towards him as if to embrace him. The sound of her beautiful voice reached Spectre's ears, mystifying him as it sounded familiar. However, as for Lightning and the _kazoku_ , they all stared at her in bewilderment.

 _"Rīpā! Iie! Sutoppu!_ Reaper! No! Stop!" Cloud called out, running after the singing Huntress. Just as he was about to grab her by the shoulder, he was blocked by a wall of light, throwing him back. Reaper looked back at the Titan, who had her Celestial Nighthawk off thanks to Rex. Her eyes clearly cried out to resolve the problem at hand. And yet, Cloud stood down.

 _"Saita no no hana yo,_ Wild flower, blossoming,

 _Aa douka oshiete okure,_ I beg of you, tell me this so I know too,

 _Hito wa naze kizutsukeatte,_ Why do people fight,

 _Arasou no deshou,_ They all act as if it's right _~"_

The Sunbreaker stepped backwards as the Bladedancer continued to approach him, the light emitting from her quelling Dragunus's hunger for Light. Reaper smiled warmly as if she was a sister of Spectre's, not even stopping her approach. She came within tendril reach of the berserk Titan, and immediately did her gray eyes start to pierce through the gold of Nero's eyes. Reaper had hoped to return him to normal, as she had feared that he would've given in to his grief to cause him to lose control of himself.

 _"Rin to saku hana yo,_ Valiant flower, blossoming," right before Reaper could sing the next verse of her song, the berserk Titan had lashed out at her. He clawed at her with his draconic hand, making her cry in pain as she fell to the ground. Her water-like aura had vanished as soon as she was struck by Nero's arm, and yet again Dragunus roared.

"No!" Lightning reached an arm to the fallen Huntress, but her arm fell to the ground in a futile attempt. All she could do was watch on.

However, the watery aura had returned, faint than before and recapturing Nero's attention. This time, the watery light had surrounded both Reaper and the son of Trionus like a ritual circle of sorts. _"Watashi wa utaou, Na mo naki mono no tame,_ We've lost your name but I will sing for you…" she faced the Sunbreaker, a fresh cut under her left eye and bruises all over her face from the attack. She tried to get up, but found herself back against the ground. Her throat was grabbed by Nero's dragon-like arm, securing her to the ground as they were face to face.

He growled in her face, and it was here that she saw that his face was corrupted like all of the veins in his face were popped out, but colored black. She always asked herself what was Spectre hiding ever since Lightning told her to stay out of it. Her persistence and curiosity got the better of her, unfortunately. Perhaps this was it? The war that she was trying to step into? No. It wasn't what he became now. It's something else. She's sure of it. But this was a secret so dark that he kept it all to himself.

Pleading with her eyes, she gently held Spectre's draconic arm with both of her hands. She had only hoped that the message she will say now will help him return to normal. "Kill me if you want. …but…do it as yourself." Reaper continued to look at Spectre in the eyes, never letting go of his arm and keeping them there. A moment of silence passed between both the Titan and Huntress, and she saw that the golden glow in his eyes began to waver. Dots of blue light started to rise from the circle, and the sound of wind chimes followed.

The tension around her neck loosened, and she smiled. Spectre lifted his hand away, allowing Reaper to finally let go of his arm.

His shadow tendrils started to twitch wildly, and he clutched his head with both hands. He breathed heavily as the pain of a million stabs returned to him. Falling to his knees, the pain started to grow steadily, and he couldn't take it anymore. The tendrils started to fade back into the shadows, leaving the son of Trionus and Spectre started to give pained cries, still clutching his head. The pain was more than tolerable, and he screamed towards the heavens painfully. Dragunus, at long last, gave one last roar at the same time as Nero as it faded just the same.

He collapsed after Dragunus had vanished, back to normal and no longer in a berserk state. The ambiance of the hallway had returned to normal, and the Guardians that had been caught by Spectre's tendrils regrouped. Lightning got to her brother and rested his head on her lap. Her HUD returned to normal, and she scanned the vitals of her twin brother. _C'mon Spectre, don't die on me!_ His vitals were starting to drop, undoubtedly from the berserk state that started after his torture.

"Artemis! We're getting out of here! Take us back to the Tower!"

 **"But, it's going to risk─!"**

 _"Do it!"_

* * *

 **"Bum bum buuummmm… Cliffhanger!" ─Caboose**

 **AN─ Okay, I couldn't wait for a whole month for the poll to be done, so I thought, "Screw it, just put Season II in the same story as Season I." My apologies if this chapter seemed a bit rushed. I wanted to jump right into Season II** _ **so badly**_ **! Yes, I'm a bit impatient. Okay,** _ **just as impatient**_ **as Sonic the Hedgehog in one of his idle animations where he jumps off the screen and gives you a game over.**

 **So, welcome back for Season II of** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **! This arc will be titled as 'Absolution', as the previous arc was titled 'Unraveled Truth'. Everyone's gonna have a bigger role this time around, and that includes The Crimson Commander's guest characters in this fic! And yes, it's time to lay the smackdown to the Taken!**

 **Rant: Okay, I'm** _ **so**_ **prepared for the April Update tomorrow! All of that new gear, revamped PoE, new weapons, Light level 335, it's a gift from the gods! I don't care if you say the April Update's gonna be shit or what, I've been waiting for new gear and a challenge at PoE! Thank you, Bungie!**


	14. II-II: A Dark Secret Uncovered

_**Chapter II: A Dark Secret Uncovered**_

 _ **Absolution Arc**_

* * *

 _The Tower, Earth_

 _0612 Hours, December 4, 2714_

The small group of ships exited the jumpspace tunnel and found themselves en route to the Tower, the four ships going as fast as they can without making another jump. Lightning's _Draught of Nectar_ was at the head of the pack, followed by Rez's _Kondratyuk's Escape_ and Silver's _The Road Unraveled_ at its sides and Reaper's _Devil's Due BKR_ at the rear. They broke through the atmosphere, and Lightning's HUD counted down how many miles they had until they were within the City's range.

Her brother was in the loading bay with Cloud, Leon and Aqua, resting on one of the benches. His breathing was shallow, almost nonexistent. Fortunately, Aqua was by his side while Lightning was at the pilot's seat, doing her best to keep him alive with the little medical attention she knew. Artemis hovered over her partner's shoulder, checking readouts on her ship and acting as a form of heart monitor for the Sunbreaker. Her throttle-holding hands had her knuckles turn ghostly white under her gauntlets.

 _How did this happen?!_ The sequence of events in the Hanging Crypts still boggled her mind. In her entire life, she knew about how Nero had resisted the power of his bloodline. He fought it for a long time, and devoted himself to fighting like a Guardian. Only a few minutes ago did she find him, now embracing the one thing he hated and shunned. It just didn't add up. A number of possible outcomes flooded her mind, but the most prominent one out of them was that during his torture he snapped. If he wanted to live, he had no other choice but to accept it.

* * *

 _"Lightning, what the hell was that just now?!" asked Silver angrily over the comms channel once the team of seven returned to their ships._

 _"Silver, whatever you do and_ if _we ever do get in trouble,_ do not _say anything about what you saw!"_

 _"Quit beating around the bush, for the Traveler's sake!"_

 _Rez's helmeted face showed up alongside Silver's face on the video comms. "I'll have to agree with Silver here!_ What's going on?! _"_

 _"It has to be Taken… It has to!"_

 _"I doubt it. If it was the Taken that gave Spectre those tendrils, then we would have been too late to rescue him."_

 _Lightning slumped in her pilot's seat. She thought it would be easier to convince them that it was something else entirely. But they're smarter than that. She cut the video feed on her side and grabbed her forehead, her thumb and index fingers rubbing the sides of her temples. Artemis was right. And her brother as well. One of these days, there will be no choice but to spill the truth when their backs were against the wall. And if there was one thing the twins would agree on, it would be that they would turn renegade on the Cyphers once that happens._

This won't end well. _She thought._

* * *

If there was any form of defiance between her and her brother when it came to their own bloodline, it was obviously him. Spectre heard of the stories of their father. And not only did he hate his heritage's power, but of the mistake Trionus made. When they were younger, she would always hear him go one about saying how he would change their clan's mistake. And, in a way, it worked. Through being a spearhead to the Absolution Directive.

Soon enough, she came in view of the Last City, and she tugged on the throttle. Her ship slowed down as she piloted the craft towards the Tower. Her eyes glanced over at a video feed on one of her controls, keeping an eye on her brother. Most of his Titan's armor plating was gone, and the remaining parts are shattered or appeared to be burnt off. The Honor of Cormorant was torn up beyond recognition, and some of his blood was splattered over it. His rubber armor was the prominent armor, with some areas exposing his flesh and pelted in dried blood. Occasionally, he started twitching like an electrocuted body and prompting Aqua to hold him down.

"C'mon, just a little further…!" Lightning lowered the speed once more as the four ships were within proximity to the Tower, bringing it to a complete slow. She jumped out of her seat and let the autopilot take over, running to the loading bay.

She removed her helmet and let it fall onto the bench before swinging Nero's arm over her shoulder and lifted him off the bench. "C'mon, help me out!" Aqua pitched in and rushed to his side, repeating the Sunstriker's actions and the both of them carried him out. Cloud and Leon didn't do much to help, but they helped regardless by checking his vitals. He's close to death, Cloud told the twin of Spectre. Not only is it starting to scare Lightning, but she was further running the risk of revealing their allegiance. The ship's rear hatch opened, and the dim light of morning rushed into their eyes.

The _Draught of Nectar_ hovered over the grass area of the plaza of the Tower much like her first entrance, but angled to ensure that the female members of the _kazoku_ don't trip once they reach the hatch. Her ship's pylons disengaged and attached themselves to hold the tilted ship in place until Lightning and Aqua got off the platform with him. Not a lot of Guardians were up as of now, and all she could do was hope that their entrance didn't wake up more of them. Lightning didn't want a widespread ruckus that could result in the worst case scenario. At the corners of her eyes, she saw her brother's Fireteam and Reaper emerge from the Hangar.

Once again, Lightning saw the Guardians having their weapons out and aimed at her ship, but immediately lowered them since they saw their greatest Titan. Many began to approach the three, only for Cloud and Leon to emerge from the loading bay and yelling at them to back off. Of course, the ones trying to help didn't understand Cloud one bit, but Leon was enough to relay his message. And with Cloud drawing out his sword and blocking the Guardians, they got the idea. Leon drew out Lionheart and pointed the edge of the blade at them, further reinforcing Cloud's motive.

Spectre's body twitched at the worst of times, this time violent than before. His twitching caused both Titaness and Warlock to lose their grip on him, and he collapsed on the front of the staircase. Lightning rushed to his side, the heart monitor Artemis has enabled slowly reaching the flat line.

 _Not now! C'mon, Nero! Don't go now!_ Amongst the crowd of Guardians watching on, she caught the glimpse of a Fireteam of six. She knew the leader of the Fireteam well. She trained him, after all. _"Dmitri!"_ screamed Lightning.

Dmitri and the team's medic, 20/20, rushed over towards them. The Exo knelt down next to the leader of Nero Bianco, his Ghost analyzing the body. Beams of light scanned the body at all angles, and 20 pulled out an emergency first aid kit. Dmitri stood next to Lightning, tempted to slap his mentor in the face. Instead, he grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her.

"What the hell were you thinking, going on your own to the Dreadnaught?!"

"I'm not leaving Spectre there to die!"

"You're insane! You could've went to us for backing you up!"

Lightning shoved Dmitri off her shoulders, putting up a fist to deck Dmitri but restrained herself. "But there are things that Guardians like you shouldn't know!"

"Well what _shouldn't_ we know!?"

The Exo already started on checking his pulse. Definitely close to death's door. He's running out of time. Just as he lifted the Titan's wrist, he saw a black substance. "What the…?" he put his fingers on it and scanned it with his optics. It's definitely not Taken like Silver had on him that day, but the substance alone just sent chills down his spine. He thought it was just a harmless substance and took out a pair of defibrillators from the medical kit. 20 charged up the defibrillators and placed them on Spectre's chest.

"Stand back!"

Everyone stood back from the medic. However, Lightning remained in close proximity to her brother, ignoring the Exo's warning. Dmitri held Lightning back, but was barely keeping her at bay since their strength parallels one another. And it was now that the shadow under his body started to writhe and snake. It began to pool towards Spectre's own shadow. The Exo didn't notice, despite being subtle. Her blue eyes widened. "20, don't do it!"

But it was too late.

A shadow tendril emerged from behind 20/20, wrapping itself around his torso and lifting him from the ground. He dropped the defibrillators and was thrown into one of the vault's towers, smashing a part of it in upon impact. However, the tendril thought it wasn't enough and slammed him into the ground, then back into the vault tower over and over again until the part of the vault came crashing down and destroying Rahool's tent he set up. Eventually, the tendril had enough and let go of the Exo Titan, dissolving back into the shadows. The rest of Fireteam Dragon rushed over to their medic's side, helping him up at his feet again. He stumbled on something and fell back down, but not before they all caught him before he hit the ground.

Aqua slid over to Nero's body and picked up the defibrillators that 20 dropped, charging them up with Arc energy. _It's been a while since I last used these… Don't die on me, Spectre!_ "Clear!" she pressed the buttons on the defibrillators and the shock dispersed into Spectre's body. The shock made his body move slightly, but the heart monitor showed a little increase in his fading heart rate. Aqua raised the voltage and channeled it into the medical tools.

However, unbeknownst to the Guardians, Aqua protruded a small syringe from her gauntlet and injected Spectre with a substance. A substance that can suppress the shadow tendril from coming back and attacking again.

"What the hell was that!?" Dmitri turned to face his former mentor, angered at the events that have unfolded just now. Cerberus had picked up a concentration of the Darkness the moment the tendril had showed up, and already did it cause a bit of a panic in him. Has the Darkness somehow infiltrated the Last City?! He felt the rise of fear and panic within the bystanders as well.

"This is exactly what I told you that Guardians like you shouldn't know!"

"What's going on here, Lightning?!"

"I told you that you don't need to know that!"

 _"What are you and your brother hiding, dammit!?"_

 _"Enough, Dmitri!"_

Dmitri turned to see the group of Guardians moving aside and saw Commander Zavala standing at the front of the stairway leading to the Hall of Guardians. Ikora and Cayde were there at his sides, Ikora with her arms crossed at the scene. Zavala's stern face had been replaced with one that can clearly say 'someone is in trouble' all over it. Of course, his arms were behind his back as usual.

"Lightning, Nero Bianco, and Reaper. Report to the Hall of Guardians _immediately_."

Lightning stepped up from her place, brushing past the leader of Fireteam Dragon. "But Zavala, Spectre needs medical attention!"

 _"Now!"_ roared Zavala.

Lightning froze and so did everyone else involved in seeing Spectre enter a berserk state, excluding the rest of the _kazoku_. Aqua was focused on using the defibrillators to try and revive Nero. Her fist tightened, and unintentionally ignited her Arcburn Strike.

"I'm not leaving my brother here to die of all places!"

"Don't worry about him," 20/20 approached the Ancient Vanguard leader's twin sister, resting a hand on her shoulder. "I'll get back to it. Hopefully that… _thing_ won't emerge again. Trust me, when Zavala wants to see someone immediately, he means it."

Lightning looked down at her brother. His chest was slowly rising and falling, and a pang of guilt shot through her heart. Not from leaving her brother here, but of the incoming harsh words of Zavala. Rez and Silver walked away from a separate Fireteam she assumed to take her brother's Fireteam's place in leading the Ancient Vanguard while the founders were on a mission and towards the Hall of Guardians. Tightening her fist, Lightning bit into her cheek. The metallic taste of her own blood reached her tongue, and she couldn't care less about it. _I'm sorry Nero. Our secret, our lineage, our people… A people that have been out surviving in the wilderness of our home…will be exposed. Forgive me._

* * *

"Do you have any idea _what you have caused?!"_ Zavala slammed his gauntleted fist into the table. "All those Guardians could've been killed by that stunt you pulled!"

"I had no involvement with that tendril!"

"He is your brother, Lightning. I assume you know something about it," pried Ikora. Her suspicions about the Titaness were starting to catch on, and Ikora wanted to confirm them.

"I don't even know what you're talking about!"

"Zavala, with all due respect, Lightning speaks the truth!" Silver stepped up from standing next to the side of Spectre's sister. "Cayde, you gotta help us here!"

Cayde-6 looked at the group of four, and his optics showed regret. "Sorry Silver, but I have no idea what's going on. As much as I would like to help, I'm afraid that I'll have to side with Zavala and Ikora this time."

"But, Cayde! It's technically your fault for sending us off on your stupid missions!" said Rez.

"Spectre isn't hiding anything!" added Lightning. "And I swear I don't know anything about that attack!"

"I don't care if you had some involvement or not!" yelled Zavala, and Silver winced upon hearing him yell but not Lightning. "Not only are we facing off with the Taken and Oryx, but now _this_?!" he faced his protégé's sister. "What's going on, Lightning? Is your brother Taken or not!?"

Even though she was supposed to be lying about all of this, she felt the anger rising up in her. She thought she could last long enough to not have the Vanguard breathing down her neck. But instead, Lightning felt as though the Cyphers planned all of this, from Nero's capture to the situation she's in now. She didn't know which boiled her blood, the Cyphers or the Vanguard.

A darkness wrapped itself around her heart. She faced the floor, avoiding the Vanguards' gaze and her face darkened. _I don't want to…!_ The temptations that took over her people and caused their exile were starting to tempt her. It wanted her to kill the Vanguards, and maybe even prove what they feared. As so, it whispered in her ears, repeating its request over and over. She wanted to ignore it. She wanted to ensure that all of that training to surpass their father's power didn't go to waste. But the temptation kept going, and slowly did she start to lose her resistance.

"Well? What do you have to say, Lightning?" asked Ikora, arms crossed and staring at the Titaness.

"…Shut up."

As if the words out of Lightning's mouth stung, Ikora unfolded her arms. "What did you say?"

"I said, 'shut up'!"

In the blink of an eye, Ikora had inched her head away but still stood at her place. Zavala and Cayde reached for their weapons, but didn't draw them. They wanted to draw their weapons, but it was as if they were stopped before they could. Zavala's face clearly showed shock and anger, but Cayde's had surprise written all over it. Their hands were on their respective copies of Fabian Strategy and Ace of Spades. Even Rez, Silver and Reaper had their hands on their weapons, but didn't draw them out.

Standing in between Ikora and Lightning was the blade of a sword. Instead of Lightning's Infinite Edge, it was a completely different sword. The blade was completely black and curved like a katana despite being double-edged. Red etchings ran along the blade, some of the symbols completely unknown while Ikora recognized some of them. And the finishing detail to her new sword? Black smoke emerged from the blade, making it look like it was just forged.

Not only did her new sword appear, but the rest of Nero Bianco and Reaper were shocked as a menacing red glow appeared in the room. Lightning had a spirit looming over her shoulders like her brother, but it was not a dragon. It was a wolf's head. There were no tendrils protruding from her back, but a pair of golden eyes dominated her blue ones. The wolf spirit snarled at the Vanguards, but didn't attack.

"You Guardians of the Light don't understand, do you?! You have no idea what consequences your actions have on others, including amongst yourselves!" Lightning had snapped, and she's proving her point by putting the edge of the blade right at her neck. Her voice even sounded like she was possessed by a spirit. "Do you even know how it felt when you exiled us seventy-three years ago?! Because of a stupid mistake?! You don't deserve to be under the Traveler's protection if you're always this weak!"

"Who are you really, Lightning?" asked Ikora calmly, despite the blade at her neck.

"A long forgotten ally from a dark time, Master Rey." The Vanguards and the ones in trouble turned around to look at the entrance of the Hall of Guardians. Standing there was a figure in white robes and a black hood with a mask on. Hands behind his back, he started to step into the Hall of Guardians. Lightning knew who it was and had another sword out pointed at him, sharing the same design as her previous one but a double-edged sword instead of a katana.

"Speaker, don't come any closer!" warned Zavala.

The Speaker raised a hand in a 'be quiet' motive. Immediately, the Titan Vanguard understood and stood down. Rez, Silver and Reaper backed away from the enraged Lightning and they breathed a sigh of relief that the wolf over her shoulders didn't notice and lash out at them. Lightning lowered her katana-wielding blade, but kept her other one pointed as the Speaker approached the table.

"I felt something was amiss since your arrival, Lightning. And your brother as well when he arrived at the Tower a year ago," he gently pushed the sword down so that the edge was pointed at the ground. The two traded looks, and Lightning felt the concern in his gaze. As such, the ghostly wolf over her shoulders faded away, and the aura coming from her swords ceased. "The balance has recently tipped in the Darkness's favor. Not because of Oryx, but of another. And even though we have triumphed over the Black Garden and Crota, the presence of the Disgraced One still looms over us all."

"So you know what my brother and I are."

"I would never forget what happened that day. After all, your name still rings clear in my memory and the archives. Even if it has been seventy-three years." Rez, Silver and Reaper traded each other confused looks, and so did their Ghosts. "You and your people are still angry of your exile…" he paused, looking at the most prominent symbol on the swords near the hilt. Memories of that day flooded the Speaker's mind, and he knew of their eventual return. And so did Eris. He had her keep an eye on Spectre, after all.

"…Aren't you, Tenno?"

* * *

 **Prophet: Well, look's who's back! Me!**

 **Me: I thought you were in stasis since IX!**

 **Prophet: No, I wasn't. You couldn't let me on the banters lately!**

 **Me: Sorry Prophet, I wanted to make things interesting.**

 **Prophet: It's fine, Link. So, concerning the transmission you had me decipher, I dug a little deeper and find some interesting things in the Archive.**

 **Me: Does it involve what happened here in II-II?**

 **Prophet: Yep.**

 **Me: Well, looks like we now know what the Cyphers are─or rather, a small hint at it─, but we** _ **do**_ **know that Spectre and Lightning aren't actually Titans. Wait, they're actually Tenno?**

 **Prophet: What are the Tenno?**

 **Me: Well, we'll have to wait next chapter to have an idea. Besides, the Speaker** _ **insisted**_ **on telling us the next chapter. So in the meantime, have patience little grasshopper. Our answers will be here. As always, we'll see you in the next chapter!**

 **Keep on fighting the good fight, Guardians!**


	15. II-III: Tenno

_**Chapter III: Tenno**_

 _ **Absolution Arc**_

* * *

"…That name died out a long time ago," retorted Lightning, grinding her teeth and gripping the handle of her katana, Dawneater, angrily. The other sword, Dusk Repulsor, kept its edge pointed at the floor with a faint trace of the dark mist encasing the blade. A burning glow resonated in the symbols along the blades of the swords and energy that looked like sparks emerged from them. A result of Lightning channeling her frustration and anger into the swords.

"Impossible. The Tenno are─"

"Forgive me for asking, but who _are_ the Tenno?" Silver asked, stepping up from the sidelines that he and his partners in the rescue of Spectre were. The three Vanguards looked at the Exo, taking in his confusion as well Rez and Reaper's. Zavala and Ikora looked at each other and then at the Speaker. As for the Speaker, he acknowledged their looks and nodded.

"Silver, there has been something we, as the Vanguard, have hidden from the Guardians for a long time." Ikora solemnly started, already feeling sorry for hiding a big secret to one of her best pupils.

"What are you saying, Ikora?"

Before Ikora could even formulate words, the Speaker spoke. "For seventy-three years, we hid something from the knowledge of the Guardians and kept it between Zavala, Ikora, and I. Cayde knows little of this, since he was only the Vanguard for the Hunters for four years. And it has involved what stands before us today."

"Have you looked at the shield and asked yourself, 'Were there always three classes? Titans, Hunters, and Warlocks?'?" Zavala added, glancing towards the shield. The shield that had the three classes' emblems emblazed on it into four equal sections. At the bottom right hand side of the shield, it was completely blank.

"Many would assume that there was only three, but there are others that think otherwise. And truthfully, they're right," explained Ikora, noting the emblem printed on her side of the table. Then she glanced over at the leader of the Ancient Vanguard's side, where there was the emblem of a dragon in front of an inferno and its wings spread towards the heavens. "There never was only three. A fourth was with us."

"And this is where Lightning, her friends, and her brother come in," said the Speaker, standing in Spectre's place at the table and examining the emblem. "I think it's time to let the Guardians know. Secrets cannot be hidden forever, Zavala; in time, they will be exposed."

"You are right, sir," Commander Zavala lifted his hand from the pistol grip of Fabian Strategy. "Rez, Silver-79, and Reaper. You three will be the first of the Guardians to know of this secret. Listen closely, because once this has been told to the other Guardians, who knows what will become of Spectre."

The three looked at each other, completely surprised of the Vanguards and the Speaker hiding something from the Guardians. This only peaked the Huntress's curiosity further, and intrigued the Exo the same way. Rez gulped at being involved in a conspiracy that was too dangerous to be in, and started to walk away. But not before Silver caught him by the cloak and pulled him back into line. The Nightstalker let out a defeated whine but that quickly changed when the Warlock's hand sparked with Arc energy. The majority of the trio nodded an affirmative. As if on cue, the room darkened like when the Vanguards were briefing about the Taken.

"Around the time of the Collapse, when we were all still trying to harness the powers from the Traveler to create our subclasses, us Titans, Hunters, and Warlocks were powerless to defend the City. All we had were our weapons. No Supers, no grenades, nothing," began Zavala grimly, the secrecy leaking out on his every word. "As the Titans were defending the Wall, Hunters going out into the wilderness of our worlds, and Warlocks in the Archives and on the battlefield when needed, who was there to defend the Traveler and the City when we all failed?"

"This is where the fourth class came into play. Among the three classes, there was a class that made their presence known no matter where they were. They were masters of the sword before all weapons, and the first to utilize the Light as a weapon," Ikora added in, and a holographic image appeared at the center of the desk. An emblem appeared before them, this one of a phoenix rising from an inferno and two swords that strongly resemble Spectre's Raze-Lighter crossing each other in an 'X' formation behind the immortal bird. "This class…became known as the Tenno. They made their name known across the system by everything they've done. Not just because they were the first to use the Light as a weapon, but also of many reasons. They fought unlike us and showed no mercy to the Darkness, as well as having more than three Subclasses. However, the Tenno never utilized firearms like us. They used weapons that would seem impractical in combat use, such as bows and arrows, bo staffs, tonfa, and kunai."

"Their methods and coordination among themselves and ourselves helped us defend the City and obtain our birthrights as Titans, Hunters, and Warlocks. In fact, the Tenno could be seen as the Traveler's true Guardians because of their ability to channel the Light to its fullest potential, despite the jealousy and hate they received from the other Guardian classes. At the time, they could be considered too powerful for their own good because of the immense potential they all had," Zavala stopped in his side of the tale, remembering everything. "…But that all changed one day. And thus, the reason why their emblem no longer resides in the shield."

The emblem at the center of the table started to morph, turning from the Tenno's emblem to a face of a human. Upon its appearance, Lightning had immediately recognized the face.

"The Vanguard for the Tenno, Trionus, had done the unthinkable. With some of his fellow Tenno, he ventured out into the abyss that was far from the Traveler's Light. And when they came back…"

* * *

 _"Trionus, just what were you thinking?!" A younger Zavala demanded, eyes burning with anger at the Tenno Vanguard._

 _The Tenno, well recognizable by their silver-white and gold coloring and armor modeled after ones used by Japanese samurai, had been respected─and hated─for a long time. And now, the leader of the Tenno and some of his disciples came back from a year-long expedition._

 _But something was obviously wrong._

 _For one, Trionus's armor had changed from a noble samurai's armor to one resembling a knight corrupted by the Darkness. Instead of the signature sode-jirushi on his right shoulder with the Tenno's emblem, a menacing cape that was torn and tattered replaced the sigil with a newer design. His katana, Dawnwaker, was no longer at his side and another one was sheathed across his back. Even his once proud steel-blue eyes had been replaced with gold, and so did his disciples' own._

 _"The Darkness is growing stronger, feeding off the Light…" calmly said the Tenno Vanguard, reaching for his new blade and resting a hand on the handle. He drew the blade slightly, exposing a black and red mist emerging from within the sheath. "The Guardians are next. So what choice do we have left?"_

 _"No…"_

 _"If we are to take on the Darkness, we Tenno must fight from within the Darkness. Embracing the Darkness is our only option. So forgive me, my old friend. The elite Tenno are no more, for we have disowned our birthright for a curse. No longer are my disciples and I Tenno, but we are from this day forth Dark Knights."_

* * *

Zavala looked back at Lightning, who still harbored the same gold eyes his friend had when he returned from his expedition. It continued to bring memories, both bad and good, to the Titan Vanguard. "They created a new power from their year-long endeavor, an endeavor that was both an asset and a liability. Trionus and his disciples, the Eximus, they became Dark Knights; warriors of the Darkness that swore their allegiance to the Traveler. Soon enough, the Dark Knights' numbers grew, eventually evening out with the Tenno's. The Dark Knights may be considered as a fifth class, but they are only powerful Tenno."

"But, that doesn't explain why their emblem no longer resides on the shield. Nor are they no longer among the Tower."

"It wasn't long after Trionus's return to the Tower that things were starting to change," explained the Speaker, producing a knife from his robes and setting it down on the table. The blade was black and looked like a survival knife crossed with a folding knife's folding function, with red linings along the blade's edges and the same crimson emblem on Lightning's sword printed in the middle of the blade. Scattered across its surface was the familiar splatter of blood. In fact, it looked extremely similar to Spectre's own knife.

"Only three months into their return, and we've gotten reports of many Guardians being murdered on the battlefront and the Tower. Instantly, we pinned the blame on Trionus and his Dark Knights," Ikora added, crossing her arms and glancing at her disciple. "Even some eyewitness reports said that their murders were caused by the Dark Knights. This predates Dredgen Yor's betrayal and when he was killing other Guardians, and they had a reason. Dredgen didn't."

"When Trionus testified their actions, he said that he sensed that the Guardians he and his Dark Knights killed were going to turn against the Tower and the Traveler as a whole. In a way, they prevented a civil war. A civil war that could've divided the Guardians. However, we were foolish back then. Afraid, even."

* * *

 _"You cannot do this to us!" Trionus slammed his fist on the testimonial podium, anger flaring like a wildfire. "After everything we've done, from thinning the numbers during the Battle at Twilight Gap and helping our fellow Guardians unlock their potential,_ _and this is how you repay_ _us?!"_

 _"I am sorry, Trionus. But you are posing too much of a threat to us. Your uncalled_ _-_ _for murders of over several hundred Guardians, including the Titan and Hunter Vanguards, is both a violation of the Consensus and as a Vanguard of both the Tenno and the Dark Knights!" the Speaker announced, standing in the judge's stand._ _"I know that you helped your fellow Guardians receive their birthrights from the Traveler's Light, but this chain of events starting from your disciples' ramblings of harnessing the Darkness to your expedition that created the Dark Knights proves how mad you are! Ever since you came back from your expedition, you and your Dark Knights showed signs of corruption and giving in to your 'curse'. We warned you that trying to accept the Darkness came with a price, yet you failed to listen."_

 _"But the Light only fuels the Darkness's hunger!"_

 _"And you are feeding the Darkness with the Guardians' Light! We know that their Light is gone, and your Dark Knights know how to take it. And as punishment for your crimes against the Guardians and the Traveler, you, Tenno and Dark Knight Vanguard Trionus, are hereby sentenced to exile from both the City and the Tower along with the Tenno and the Dark Knights. This court is now adjourned." The Speaker slammed the mallet, nailing the coffin for the Tenno Vanguard and his class._

 _Trionus dared to lash out at the Speaker, but two Titans restrained the Vanguard and held him down by the arms. He thrashed about to free himself, but their grip was too much for the Vanguard. The two Titans started to drag him out of the courtroom._

 _"This isn't over, Speaker! Mark my words; we_ will _return! The Tenno and Dark Knights will return, and you will pay for this! The Tower will pay for this!"_

* * *

"After that, they were all exiled from the Tower. Yet, his last words still haunt us. We don't even know if the Tenno and Dark Knights exist to this day. And thus, Trionus became known as the Disgraced One because of that."

"Until now. Because of Spectre and his sister. They still exist."

"…But not everything is true. The Tenno are no more," explained Lightning before a sphere of Darkness enveloped around her. A bright light emitted from the sphere, forcing the ones within proximity to the 'Titaness' to shield their eyes.

Once the light subsided, the Guardians of the Light lowered their arms. Instead of her Trials of Osiris gear, Lightning was in an evil knight's armor that reminded both Zavala and the Speaker of Trionus. From the tattered cape to the overall menacing armor, it bore the striking resemblance. Her swords were sheathed in an 'X' pattern, below the cape but with an easy access to draw and sheath. As if she had authority over everyone in the room, she crossed her arms and allowed her wolf spirit, Athena, to manifest. It howled towards the heavens, its call of longing and pain.

After Athena had finished howling, it lowered its head and allowing its master to pet it. "I will introduce myself. I am Lightning, twin sister of Spectre, Royal Knight of Her Grace Mara Sov, and Dark Knight classified under the Nova subclass. And my father is the Disgraced One, Trionus."

As soon as Lightning completed her introduction, the two veteran Vanguards were stunned at the revelation.

"No…!"

"But that's impossible! He was confirmed dead sixty years ago!"

Like her brother, Lightning only scoffed at the false information. "My father died seventy-three years ago. Everything you heard about his death after our exile was fabricated, to throw any sympathizers off us," Athena, still being petted by its master, growled contently and scaring the Nightstalker straight out of his skin once its deathly gaze glanced at the three. "You had your share of secrets. It's only fair if I did the same."

"Not long after our exile, a feeling of distrust and hatred sparked between the Tenno and the Dark Knights. It wasn't long until war broke out between us. Light versus Darkness, samurai versus knights, primitive weapons versus the efficient. Of course, we kept our war below the radar and out of the Tower's attention. Unlike the Tenno, the Dark Knights abandoned the Tenno's beliefs of using primitive weapons and focused on energy-based weaponry whilst keeping the tradition of using melee weapons. As Dark Knights, we predated Omolon in energy weapons but didn't stop with firearms. Soon enough, some of our melee weapons were integrated with the technology."

 **"And the Dark Knights didn't stop with the weapons."** Artemis said, hovering over Lightning's shoulder. **"I'm not really a Ghost myself."** And to prove herself, the main orb of the Ghost opened up to reveal Lightning's crystal inside. However, it was glowing in a black and red shine. Soon enough, a holographic cube projected itself in front of the shell with red radio-like waves at the center of the cube. **"I am an artificial intelligence, designated as Dark Knight Artificial Intelligence, model 'CIA'. You may call me Artemis if you wish."**

 **"I'm the same as CIA. My designation is Dark Knight Artificial Intelligence, model 'MI6'. As you can already tell, Artemis and I are named after the intelligence agencies of the American and British empires prior to humanity discovering the Traveler."** Primus added, revealing the same crystal within his shell and his true form. Unlike Artemis, Primus had navy blue radio wave lengths in his holographic cube. **"We used the shells of dead Ghosts as our own to blend in with you Guardians. And with the Animas Crystal, a crystal that revives fallen Dark Knights from the brink of death, we AIs made sure that our partners didn't die in the field."**

"The civil war between Tenno and Dark Knight raged on for the next twenty-seven years after our exile until a surprise attack was used on the Tenno when their guard was down. Ultimately, the Dark Knights won and the Tenno perished by a mass slaughtering. However, it was then that our father was executed by his own elite and disciples. They wanted to ensure that his power was never to be used in an act of blind vengeance against the Tower. And he agreed that he needed to be put down. Not out of his loss of purpose, but of the terrible power he carried as the first Dark Knight. But what they didn't know was that father had a wife bearing his children. And thus, was the origin of my brother and I."

"But I sense the Tenno within you, daughter of Trionus. They are not completely gone," said the Speaker. He rested a hand on the Dark Knight's shoulder. "I suppose it may be because of your mother. Lotus was a fine Warlock, until she gave up the path for a Tenno's."

"How did you know who my mother was?"

The Voice of the Traveler smiled. "You take more after your mother. Her strength, sense of doing the right thing, and her love for her friends and family. No one else has those exact same qualities but your mother. But above all else, she dedicated herself for what really matters to her. You should be proud of having such a wonderful mother and a brother that cares for his allies─both friends and trainees─and family," he picked up the knife that belonged to Trionus and gently handed it to her like an old man handing their grandchildren a treasured belonging. "Take this. So that you may remember your father and help carry on his legacy with your brother and friends. I knew Trionus well, and he would never do such terrible acts like what he and his Dark Knights did to us that caused so much despair."

Inside, the daughter of the Disgraced One started to tear up. For all of her life, training under the Cyphers to carry out the Absolution Directive, she was never praised like this. Memories of the years she shared with her brother and mother sparked in her mind, and their mother praising them at a good job made her feel nostalgic and happy. When her mother praised her, she was given a kiss on the forehead and her hair stroked lovingly. She wanted to toughen up, but the fact that she was much like her mother prevented her from it. Her eyes watered, but like before, the tears never fell from her eyes.

"So you are saying…?"

The Speaker shook his head, and looked at Lightning. "Only time will tell if your people can return home, so that their anger will be quelled for good. But for now, you, your brother, and your friends are welcome to stay here among us in the Tower. I know your brother has good intentions, and that proves that you too can be trusted. That was why I allowed him to start the Ancient Vanguard and his spot here in the Hall of Guardians. His desire to change everything kept him going, even in the grimmest of situations."

"Thank you, Speaker. And thank you too, Zavala," Lightning said, turning her head to face Zavala. The Titan Vanguard faintly smiled before nodding in respect. Ikora did the same, but her lips produced a more warming smile than her Awoken Vanguard counterpart.

"Zavala, Ikora, activate all communication channels in thirty minutes. It's time to let all of the Guardians across the Solar System know of our secret."

"Sir."

"Sir."

 _ **-Destiny-**_

"How is he, 20?" Lightning stood at the Traveler's Walk, arms on the railing and letting the morning breeze run through her flaxen and crimson colored hair. Artemis hovered over her side, showing a hologram of the Exo medic from Fireteam Dragon. He couldn't see her in her Dark Knight form, but she can see him normally. She was allowed to leave the Hall of Guardians after that ordeal, and truthfully, it wasn't as bad as she thought.

 _"…I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, Lightning. Spectre's constantly in a stable-critical state. One minute he's stable, the next he's starting to enter cardiac arrest,"_ responded 20/20, the look grim on his damaged face. The Dark Knight felt sorry for the Exo, especially after what he went through from being thrown around. _"His wounds and injuries are life-threatening. He has a broken collar bone, multiple stab wounds all over his body, fractured and broken bones…the list goes on. He lost a lot of blood, so who knows if he'll make it."_

"Is that all?"

 _"No. There's some kind of poison in his bloodstream and it's preventing him from healing. It's not lethal at all; just slowing down the process. His healing factor's impressive, but the poison's brought it to a crawling slow. I can estimate that his stab wounds will recover in two weeks or so with the poison in his bloodstream, but his bones are gonna take longer. Most likely months."_

Lightning glanced at the rising sun, taking in the warmth of the light. Calmly, she took a deep breath. She knew where the poison came from. Her mentors and fellow Dark Knights extracted it from a plant that grew in their territory, and it provided the same effect of slowing any healing process or factor significantly. Spectre's knife contained the poison and was constantly coated in it due to the sheath for it carrying the poison.

 _"Other than those wounds he suffered from his torture, he's in a stable condition in the medical bay right now. Wish I could say his consciousness was."_

"Why? What's happened?"

 _"Spectre's…in a comatose state. Been like that since you found him on the Dreadnaught. Wish I knew when he'll snap out of it,"_ Lightning heard someone calling his name, followed by a roar that sounded eerily like a dragon. _"I'll give you the full medical details soon. My team needs me."_

"I'll talk with you later." Artemis cut the comms line between the two, and Lightning resumed watching the sun rising in the distance. Her cape fluttered about gracefully in the wind, the emblem that her mother wore emblazed on the back in a red coloring shining in the dim light of day.

A soft growl was next to her, and the Dark Knight turned her head. Athena was at her side, head against her armored leg and letting out a low growl. Smiling, she knelt down and started scratching the back of the ghostly familiar's ears with her gauntleted hand. Once again, the wolf familiar let out a content whine and looking at its master's eyes.

"I know, Athena. We're probably gonna get an earful from the Cyphers if we get back. But you want to know something?" the familiar perked its ears up and started to pant, whining in a curious tone as well as tilting its head to the side. "I don't give a damn. The Cyphers might as well exile me from my people for all I care, but all that matters is Nero. I just pray to the Traveler he'll make it through and get back into the fight."

* * *

 _'Your time is coming, my child. The preparations must be done, so that you may join the fight.'_

Many shards were scattered across the plain in all directions. Some were just hovering above the ground, and others were suspended midair.

The millions of shards moved towards the center shard like water in a funnel. When two or more shards were close to each other, a faint spark of light would emerge from them and combine as one. It wasn't long until all the shards and pieces to become one. A sphere of Light and Darkness.

"I will be fine," the sphere said, its young voice confident and afraid. "You spent time with me to prepare myself. So that I can help them when the Taken surround them. I swear I will not let that training be in vain." As the sphere spoke, it started to stretch and expand into a cocoon-like form, the form having no signs of struggling to hold together.

 _'Even if my training prepared you, you must remember that survival is your only option. If you find yourself in a situation you can't handle, don't be ashamed to run.'_

The cocoon started to faintly shine with Light, its glow like a heartbeat.

"I understand. I will not let them lay a hand on them."

 _'…You are ready. But for now, wait. You may be ready in combat, but your form is not yet. Rest, my child.'_

Even in the dark abyss, the pulsing Light continued to shine on the cocoon. A tiny form was inside in a fetal position, and a symbol on the cocoon revealed itself. A symbol of the Fourth Class emblazoned on the black cocoon.

* * *

 **AN─ Damn, this one just took a long time to write up.**

 **Prophet: You got that right. I was getting impatient.**

 **Me: So there we have it. The Fourth Class was revealed, and the secrets kept between Zavala, Ikora, and the Speaker are here. See? I told you to have patience, Little Light.**

 **Prophet: You're just trying to push your luck with that nickname, aren't you?**

 **Me: Not really. Besides, I** _ **rarely**_ **call you that, Prophet. As for the concept for the Tenno and Dark Knight, it came to my attention when I saw the shield containing the Titan, Hunter, and Warlock emblems but a quarter of it is blank in the game. And that little detail is what made me create the class that Spectre, Cloud, Leon, Vesper, Aqua, and Lightning belong to. In fact, I pondered on the concept in November** _ **before**_ **I wrote** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **. I didn't have an official name for it until I stuck with 'Tenno', in homage to the Tenno from the game** _ **Warframe**_ **.**

 **Prophet: Yeah, and that was before you decided to have a twist on the new class of Guardians.**

 **Me: Hence the Dark Knights using the Darkness as their power instead of the Light. So I don't know when I'll have II-IV posted, but it'll come when it comes to me (praying that no more distractions happen, of course). When it comes to the Tenno and Dark Knights, their armor is modeled after the samurai and evil knight armors respectively, but given a _Destiny_ feeling and their class armors are ****sode-jirushi (basically a cloth with an emblem or sigil sewn on it and worn on the arm much like a Warlock's Bond) and for Dark Knights, they wear a cape (condition of cape from clean to torn and tattered signifies their rank) with an emblem or sigil printed on the side facing outward.** **Also, to clarify the chronological history of the Tenno, they were exiled a hundred years prior to Year 2, and the following twenty-seven years went to the Tenno-Dark Knight War, which ended in the Tenno's extinction, Trionus's execution, and both Spectre/Nero and Lightning to be born. Until then, stay strong and keep up the fight, Guardians!**


	16. II-IV: When the Storm Arrives

**_Chapter IV: When the Storm Arrives_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1027 Hours, December 17, 2714_

It won't stop.

A sound dreaded by many over and over again.

Every moment they breathe, every moment they live... This sound will never leave their ears or mind.

It was like a swarm of corpse-eating flies buzzing in her ears, screeching and howling for eternity and she couldn't get it out of her ears no matter how hard she tried. The flies had burrowed in her ears and created a hive in her canals, the multitude of them resuming their irritating fluttering and driving a stake into her state of emotions, pinning down her concern and letting worry drown her until she couldn't breathe.

Lightning sat next to her brother in the medical bay, looking at him with all of her attention and wellbeing. She was in casual clothing that closely mirrored her brother's when he was out on a date with Reaper, but her blouse was smoke gray instead of crimson red. He was hooked up to multiple machines attached to his body and arms, as well as a breathing mask covering his mouth. The heart monitor kept on beeping albeit in a rather slow pace that defied the border of death and life. He wasn't dead, but his heart rate was below the average for anyone in a coma. Nero's chest rose and fell, but not like he normally would if he was still conscious. To his older twin it looked as though he was peacefully asleep instead of being in a coma for Traveler knows how long as a result of the torture he went through.

Lightning took hold of one of his hands and squeezed gently. She resisted the urge to break into tears upon seeing her 'little brother' in such a state. She was his older sister, for crying out loud! Why did she leave him those nine years ago?! It was her duty to look after him after their mother's death, not focus on herself and her need to be stronger! Lightning knew that she failed her mother's last wish. She wanted to turn back time and attack the Cyphers before they sent her off to the Reef. They told her weakness makes a Dark Knight weak to their power. And with weakness, a Dark Knight suffers a fate far cruel than death.

 _Damn the Cyphers! I hate them, I hate them,_ I hate them! She screamed in her head, loathing her mentors for forcing her to become stronger. Lightning couldn't hold it in anymore. The tears were blurring her vision. A few had fallen from her steel blue eyes, landing on her hand overlapping her brother's.

"I'm sorry… I left you alone for nine years, alone so that you could suffer the weight of the burden we carry. Nero… I shouldn't have left in the first place. I could've spared you from having to carry the weight of her death on your own," she pressed her forehead against her hands that was still squeezing her brother's hand, sobbing at her mistakes. She saw his scar on his cheek and she knew how bad Vesper's death impacted him. "Some sister I turned out to be. I left you for my pursuit for being stronger. I didn't even stop to think about my own brother."

In the midst of her crying, Lightning felt something rest on her shoulder. It wasn't Primus or Artemis, but a hand. She wasn't sure if it was real or not. However, she sensed the presence of Light.

"Why are you here, Guardian? Can't you leave me be?"

"Lightning, I know how you and your class hate us. But please, do know that there are Guardians that sympathize you." The familiar voice of the bow-wielding Bladedancer reached the Dark Knight's ears, despite her disliking of the Guardians. "Even if it has been two weeks, we're still in shock that a fourth class existed."

Lightning wiped the tears from her eyes and looked at the Huntress. "Says the multitude that called us unwanted by the Traveler. And honestly, we accepted the Darkness."

"Are you seriously gonna let Adam and his friends just talk to you like that?! You're a Dark Knight; the bane of anything that stands in your way!"

"Abusing my power and position as the current representative of the Dark Knights can result in exile again. I swore that I would right that wrong father made. Both me and my brother." The daughter of Trionus conjured a sphere of Darkness in her hand, mesmerized and unfazed at the action. "And believe me, there are times that I wish that I took his Light away. But if I lose control of myself, then I've repeated what my father did long ago."

Reaper looked over at the comatose leader of the Ancient Vanguard, then back at the temporary Dark Knight vanguard. _This isn't the Lightning I know. She's changed._ Reaper figured that she deeply cared for Spectre, and thus the change. She hoped that she wasn't stepping on the wrong path before her Light is consumed by the Darkness within a Dark Knight. During her wandering around in the Tower, the ones that were torturing the new generation of Dark Knights were deliberately trying to get Lightning and the _kazoku_ exiled. Truthfully, it boiled her over to hear such hateful commentary from her fellow Guardians of the Light.

"Lightning, do you still trust me?" blurted out Reaper suddenly.

"…Truthfully? I know you just want to help, but that eagerness without thinking about the effects it could have on you can get you killed or worse. So, in spite of your desire to help and over eagerness, yes." Lightning kept her back facing the Huntress, glancing at her comatose brother. "But answer me this: that song you sang to calm Spectre," she slowly rose from her chair and faced the Bladedancer. "Where did you learn it?"

Reaper turned to face Rex, whose eye was glowing in a notion that indicated both uncertainty and secrecy. The Huntress also shared the same facial expression before facing Lightning. "…I… I don't know. It just sparked in my mind when Rex revived me. I just sang or hummed to it. It couldn't leave my mind. Why?"

"That song was sung by one of my friends when my people were still hiding from the Tower and Vanguard. However, she sang it in English; the tone and message was exactly the same." Lightning stopped before she revealed the name of her brother's fiancée. She figured that she could let Nero talk about it. If he escapes his coma, that is.

"How do you know what it means if the one I sing is in another language?"

"Cloud. He speaks in Japanese, and we understand him. You sang it in Japanese. Besides, he knows the English to Japanese translation well," just before Reaper could ask her next question, Lightning continued. "He once spoke in English before, but an injury to his vocals during one of his missions forced him to adopt another language to compensate."

There was a knock on the door causing the two to turn their heads. In walked in 20/20, whose face was slightly repaired from the last time they saw him. In his hand was a portfolio—or the 28th Century equivalent of it—as his Ghost loomed over his shoulder.

"I figured you would be here, Lightning."

"When would I not be?" responded Lightning, her sapphire orbs dimly shining in the morning light.

The Exo Titan skimmed through the portfolio before closing it again. "Sorry the full report took too long. With the Tower going nuts with both the SRL and having been told that a fourth class exists, I had to scramble around the place to compile the data," he handed it to Lightning, who started to examine the data extensively. He noticed the freelancing Bladedancer. "You're welcome to take your leave, Reaper."

"I think I'll be comfortable having to hear this, thank you very much."

20/20 sighed defeatedly, then facing Lightning. "Excluding the information I told you two weeks ago—and thankfully being able to not explain it again—, he has a very slim chance of living. Especially with the poison hindering his healing. We tried getting it out of his system, but nothing works. Most of the detoxifying equipment were contaminated and infected by the time we removed them from his body."

Lightning looked up from reading through the medical report. "That's the point of us Dark Knights using the poison. We infect someone with it, and it will hinder their healing up to the point they die. It won't leave until the victim's dead. I know an antidote to removing it, but it could kill him at this state."

"Even if Spectre manages to pull through, it poses an incredible threat to his own health. Hell, he may not be able to go back into the field anymore!" His optics whirred and focused, adjusting his sight since the damage he took that day was causing his vision to glitch out. "And that's not all. We tried to give him surgery to piece his bones back together but the tendril just shoved us away. It clearly didn't want to have Spectre touched."

"That tendril was in a reflexive state. It protects the Dark Knight from any form of attack—guess it took surgery and defibrillators as attacks—while allowing them to naturally heal. Basically, the tendril is security," clarified Lightning.

"Great, just great. Now how are we gonna patch your brother up if his tendrils are gonna prevent us from getting there and stitching up his bones?"

"You don't," she closed the portfolio and shoved it into 20's chest. "His healing factor should cover it, with or without the poison. The only thing that can be done is making sure he doesn't reach cardiac arrest."

Before long, Lightning left the medical bay, the door sliding shut just as soon as she was out of sight. Both the Exo and human Huntress were taken aback by her sudden personality change. As if they were freed from being frozen, they took a deep breath. One minute she was here crying because of her brother, the next she returns to normal. Talk about a storm. Reaper glanced over at the comatose Dark Knight after that moment of silence.

"You know he's not supposed to have visitors. And that includes you, Reaper."

"Says the Exo that has been thrown around like a rag doll and needs to constantly adjust his optics when they start glitching out until he can find the source of the problem," countered Reaper, darting a triumphant look at the Exo Titan. And to add icing to the cake, she smirked slyly.

"Touché." 20 heard the small snickering coming from his Ghost, who was hovering at the sidelines. "What're you laughing at?"

 **"Oh, nothing. Maybe the fact that you just got served by the Predator. Who knew she'd have a sharp tongue?"**

 **"Watch your words, because that tongue isn't just for Guardians,"** Rex materialized from nowhere, glancing at the Exo's Ghost. **"She can use her sharp tongue on other Ghosts."**

 **" _…_ Noted."**

* * *

When it came to the Tower during an event, it would either be jam-packed with Guardians preparing for some of the activities or for other businesses like decrypting engrams by the simultaneously hated and respected Cryptarch posted here, speak with faction leaders, purchase new equipment and weapons, and even collect packages. Since the Sparrow Racing League was on, many of the Guardians were in armor or shaders that were introduced in the event. Even the SRL banners were hung overhead, further adding its presence.

Lightning emerged from the Northern section of the Tower, her casual clothing replaced by her Dark Knight armor. Some of the Guardians stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to her, some of their looks sympathetic and others a blend between hate and fear. Of course, Lightning ignored the attention and made her way to the Traveler's Walk, the giant barrier moving out of the way. Ever since the Speaker revealed the existence of the Dark Knights, they were given the Traveler's Walk to serve as their dojo of sorts here in the Tower since the spot for the Tenno/Dark Knight Vanguard was already occupied by her brother and the Ancient Vanguard. Of course, the _kazoku_ had to share the place when Lord Saladin arrives to set up shop for Iron Banner.

Once she stepped into the other side and the barricade closing shut behind her, she found Cloud meditating in the Seiza position with both his Buster Sword and completed Fusion Swords stabbed in the ground on both sides. Aqua was busy digging her nose into her journal, reviewing some documents left by her parents, some complete and others just waiting for Aqua to finish. At the far end, Leon was occupied with his training, dueling with a shadow clone of himself he created from smoke. Lionheart clashed with its own shadow, the sounds of the blades crashing against each other nonexistent. His aggressive fighting style seemed to compliment the fact that he's hot-headed since he lost his older sister.

 _Just like old times…_ Lightning murmured, a faint smile crossing her lips at what's going on. However, deep in her heart she knew something was missing from this picture. A void that couldn't be filled again. Vesper.

Her almost sister-in-law's presence was no more, only to live on in their memories. She remembered when Vesper was sitting under a tree with Nero in their field back home, the two having the look of content and love as they enjoyed their moments together. Often, Lightning saw Vesper resting her head on her brother's shoulder after a long day. Of course, she sang a particularly annoying rhyme when she saw the two acting lovey dovey. It went on for months and the last time she sang the rhyme, both of them threw apples at her. As it was the last straw for them that time, Lightning was greeted with a cold reception.

* * *

 _"Well well, what do we have here?" a younger Lightning teased, looking on at the main tree in the field Spectre and Vesper often go to. Vesper was sitting next to her boyfriend, head resting against his shoulder and was apparently taking a nap before Lightning's presence ruined it._

 _Vesper yawned and stretched her arms, then looking at their visitor. "Leave us alone, Light. Why don't you head back to town and find yourself a man of your own?" she murmured._

 _"Oh, I just wanted to tell you guys something," Lightning was met with some irritated groans from the couple and a small plead to not break out into rhyme. Too late for that. "Nero and Vesper, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"_

 _Just before she could break into the next verse, Spectre had picked up an apple from a pile at his side and threw it at his sister. He handed Vesper one as well and she threw it as well. The first thrown apple missed, but Vesper's had hit her square in the arm._

 _"Seriously? Apples? Can't you two think of anything better than something_ that _childish?" taunted the older sister of Nero, wiping the apple remains off of her arm and laughing it off. It was at this moment that she didn't notice that the couple sitting under the tree had an evil grin on their faces._

 _Right in Spectre's hand was a cable-like rope. He predicted that this would happen eventually again, and it was the last straw for him and Vesper. So, the couple devised a plan to get back at her. Just as his sister wasn't paying attention, which was the cue he needed, Spectre lightly pulled on the rope._ Three… Two… One… _He bit his tongue and watched the next chain of events unfold._

 _The couple watched on as a deviously hidden bucket toppled over from a branch. Lightning still didn't notice until the contents came down on her. Lightning screamed like a banshee as the water splashed down on her, drenching her from head to toe in arctic-cold water courtesy of Aqua. That and the fact that it was close to dusk, just screamed 'cold'._

 _Even if Lightning would suffer a cold later, it was still worth it to both Nero and Vesper. While Lightning was busy glaring at the two and drying herself up, the couple were snickering and laughing at their payback. Nero failed to hold back his laughter, seeing as it was funny to hear his sister scream like a little girl being jumpscared by a monster._

* * *

Quite a change from the previous times, which often flustered the two of them and told her to shut up. And she learnt her lesson of underestimating her brother's cleverness.

Then, her mind shifted to Reaper. The Bladedancer clearly shared some parallels with Vesper, particularly in the singing department. They had a similar voice and elegance to it. She also remembered Vesper using a bow and arrow for some game hunting out in the woods near their village. Something gnawed at her thoughts, an idea that seems incredibly ludicrous. What if Vesper lived? Of course, here came the concrete evidence. There's no way that Vesper could've survived the shot that killed her. She knew what a gun built by Vesper can do; a guaranteed kill with a single shot to the head. Something about Reaper seemed familiar, like they've known each other for a long time.

 _"Raitoningu._ Lightning _,"_ Lightning snapped out of her spacing out and saw Cloud standing before her, apparently done with his meditating. He wasn't one for showing his face, but he removed his helmet. Behind the helmet that was An Insurmountable Skullfort was a man her age with gravity-defying blonde hair and blue eyes that looked like navy-colored fire. It's no wonder why the other members of the _kazoku_ called him 'Chocobo head'. His hair was just too damn spiky! _"Daijōbu desu ka?_ Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just remembering the peaceful times. Before this turmoil happened, before Vesper died, back during the times we'd all meet up after spending nearly thirteen hours in the dojo in training. The times when we'd unwind and have some fun before having to go home and repeat the cycle over and over."

Just as Lightning was going to let a tear fall from her eye from her nostalgia, Cloud held her close in a sibling-like manner. Maybe even more than just a comforting manner. Shocked, Lightning's blue orbs widened and she managed to hold it back thanks to the sudden chain of events. He never showed any sign of caring before, but why now of all times?

 _"Shinpai nasaranaide kudasai. Subete umaku ikimsu._ Don't worry. Everything will be alright," whispered the brawn of the _kazoku_ , making the two look at each other in the eye. _"Makase te, Tohsaka._ Trust me, Tohsaka."

The battle-hardened daughter of Trionus felt her face heat up. She tried to speak, but her words were starting to fail her. Flustered, she tried to break free from his embrace before anyone seeing this gets the wrong idea, but her strength couldn't compare to Cloud's. It was like comparing a wolf to a rhino. An alpha wolf of the pack against a very angry, so-pissed-off-it-could-stab-you-with-its-horn-without-any-second-thoughts rhino. Her mouth mimicked speaking, but no words came out. "I-idiot! You're not supposed to say my birth name like it's normal!"

Lightning really considered Cloud as someone to trust with her birth name, aside from her mother and brother. Unlike her brother, her name wasn't changed when she was in her mother's arms after she was born. She didn't hate her name at all. In fact, she was grateful for it. But when the others in the village said her name in either a taunting or provoking way it just made her feel weird and sound weak, two of which she hates.

She looked over Cloud's shoulder to see Leon crossing his arms and giving a disapproving look before Aqua nudged him in the shoulder. They whispered something to one another and looked back at the other two members of the _kazoku_. He scratched the back of his head, and Aqua gave a bit of a smile while mouthing something and intertwining her hand with Leon's. _Dammit, of course she'd take it the wrong way…_

"Hey, Chocobo head! Let go of me!" whispered Lightning angrily. "They're getting the wrong idea!"

Complying, Cloud let go of her. The two sent a death glare at the other couple, Lightning grinding her teeth and Cloud tightening his fist. Not only was Lightning back to her old self, but it also put Cloud in a very bad position. At least the scene didn't unfold out in the Tower Plaza, otherwise their respective reputations would stoop into a dangerous level.

Tohsaka growled through her teeth, "This never happened, Aqua."

"Oh trust me, I saw nothing," she understood the circumstances based on Lightning's body language. "My lips are sealed. I'll fight Cloud to prove it. Right, Cloud?"

Cloud had already gone to put on his helmet back on, his face hiding behind the visor before his Titan armor morphed into his Dark Knight form. He approached the area where he meditated and yanked both of his swords out, the Fusion Swords disassembling into six and being put away in a holster on his back. He faced the Sorceress of the _kazoku. "K_ _youmi nai ne._ Not interested," he said, resting the flat end of the Buster Sword on his shoulder.

"Of course he'd say that," muttered Leon.

"What can you expect? Cloud's Cloud." His girlfriend added, slapping him in the back of the head. Again, the younger brother of Vesper rubbed the back of his head with his hand, knowing the playful notion behind Aqua despite sticking her nose in a book.

On the inside, the daughter of Trionus smiled at the scene. She took account of the rest of the _kazoku_ , including her comatose brother and felt the shiver of nostalgia return. _Things never changed, did they?_

* * *

 _'You had lost it all, your Darkness tainted to the corrupted of the corrupted.'_

 _A cosmic colored substance crawled all over the dark form as it meditated._

 _'I knew that he had been Trionus's son from the moment we met. I cannot allow that power to slay my Liege.'_

 _The substance enveloped the chestplate, turning it into a black and blood red color._

 _'You are no Trionus, for you have dishonored yourself a hundredfold than he did.'_

 _It soon reached their helmet, running around in the ravines that formed a pattern at the visor._

 _'Just as I gifted the power to Take to gift to my Influenced, I gift you my vengeance. My anger, my hatred now belongs to you.'_

 _Soon enough, the pattern on the helmet had morphed the pattern into a new, menacing look and the shadow raised their head._

 _"What is your command, my master?"_

 _'Stalk them. Know their every move. Hunt them down. Destroy their hope and spirit. Blot out their Light and Darkness with your Darkness, my Stalker. Do it before She sends her Heir to protect them from future despair.'_

 _The Taken rose up and raised their head, a dark smile forming on their face under the corrupted helmet, the symbol of the Taken General formulating on their Cape. The helmets of both a Titan and a Dark Knight fell at the Stalker's sides, completely battered and unrecognizable regardless of being in the Taken realm or outside it._

 _"I will not fail you, my master. For I am their reckoning!"_

* * *

 **Prophet: Great, now we got ourselves a handful… Again.**

 **Me: Don't look at me. As I said in I-III, I want to put a new twist to the _Taken King_ story. Reaper reveals how she knows the song sung by Vesper, hints towards a possible romance between Cloud and Lightning, and another threat planning to go after Spectre's _kazoku_ and Fireteam. Yeesh, just when things were going to get peaceful too…**

 **Prophet: What about that other cliffhanger at the end of the previous chapter?**

 **Me: Patience, young grasshopper. Time will tell of what is to come concerning that.**

 **Prophet: If I had feet, then I would be tapping the hell out of it in impatience.**

 **Me: We're through with this chapter. Until then, keep fighting Guardians!**


	17. II-V: Let the Battle Royale Begin

**_Chapter V: Let the Battle Royale Begin_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

One by one, thirty combatants transmatted onto the wilderness that was Old Tokyo, an area left alone by Lord Shaxx for Crucible use–until today. In spite of the 845 square mile city, only a section of the Shinjuku ward was to be used in this Crucible match, and that section was the entire Shibuya district. All thirty combatants appeared in the center of the woodland area, encircled around a large structure placed by Lord Shaxx. Lightning and the _kazoku_ were the last to arrive, their capes flying about during their descent and landed with a bit of a shockwave under their feet. All five were no longer in their Guardian armor, but replaced with their own Dark Knight armor.

Lightning scanned over her competition in this match, seeing Silver, Rez, and Reaper amongst the combatants. Her gaze soon fell upon a certain three-man Fireteam, and her fist was engulfed in Darkness. The air around her changed, making ripples as if she was intimidating the competition.

 _"_ _Battle Royale,"_ the combatants heard the familiar voice of Shaxx over their comms, their HUDs engaging and showing the combatants participating in this match. _"Leave no one standing! And may the odds ever be in your favor!"_ Soon enough, the modifiers appeared on their HUDs, marking down the allowed and banned. So far, Exposure x50, Juggler, Chaff, Trickle x10, and a brand new modifier appeared. The new one was known as 'You Only Live Once', to which Guardians in the match only have one life and if that Guardian is dead, they're out of the match until its over. However, with the multiplied Exposure and Trickle in effect it guarantees a long match. A timer appeared alongside the modifiers, counting down from sixty seconds until the Battle Royale starts.

To Lightning, she couldn't believe how it all started. It boiled her over, and after resisting the urge to beat the living daylights out of Adam and taking his Light, she might get her chance to do one of the two. Even if the Darkness was tempting her to take Adam's Light, she managed to push it aside and focused on the fight.

* * *

 _"_ _You can't blame anything on me, Dark Knight!" a smug Adam yelled._

 _"_ _If you think you're so slick, think again, you so-called Guardian of the Light!" Leon was restrained by both Tohsaka and Cloud, preventing him from lashing out at the Titan and potentially losing their chance to be among the Tower. Adam was held back by North and South despite having some form of distrust towards the Dark Knights._

 _The_ kazoku _and Fireteam Sparta were butting heads again, this time between the two hotheads of the teams. It was starting to get under the_ kazoku _'_ _s skin, and this time was no exception. Adam and his buddies have stepped into deep water now. In fact, Leon and Adam already had their weapons out, the glowing blade of Lionheart sparking profusely like its wielder's temper._

 _"_ _Dark Knights like you are scum! You don't deserve to be here, and I'd rather see Spectre dead!"_

 _Like before, Tohsaka snapped when she heard Adam talking to her brother like a nobody. "What is it between you and my brother?! What did he ever do to you!?"_

 _"_ _Taking all the glory, that's what! He thinks he can take on all the Tower's problems and become a legend himself? That's a load of bullshit! Everyone wants a shot at the glory but all Spectre does is stop us from getting a taste of glory!"_

 _"_ _You snooze you lose! Don't you know that saying?!"_

 _By now, a larger crowd than the one between Dragon and Blood Gulch had surrounded the two teams just dying to see the end result. Among them was Nero Bianco and the freelancing Bladedancer. The second-in-command of Nero Bianco facepalmed at the scene and Rez started to walk away, remembering the last time he was face-to-face with the loose cannon of Sparta. But alas, Reaper caught the sight of the Nightstalker slipping away and pulled him back to the crowd by the back of his cloak. Silver hoped that this wouldn't escalate further, but if this was an equation then he forgot to factor in how irritating and unpredictable Adam could be._

 _"_ _You Dark Knights think you're in charge of us, don't you?! Huh?!"_

 _"Who said that we were acting like we're in charge of you Guardians anyway?!"_

 _"You're still Tenno! Who cares if you embraced the Darkness, because you're just one and the same! Same thing, different name!"_

 _"The Tenno died out because of us Dark Knights! They're extinct!"_

 _A large commotion broke out from the crowd, disrupting the normal ambiance of the Tower Plaza with this argument. Banshee-44 stood from his shop, putting down some weapon parts and shaking his head at the scene disapprovingly. Even Master Rahool stopped analyzing some engrams that the Cryptarchs couldn't decipher and looked on. The Gunsmith and Cryptarch sensed a presence fall upon the area, and the two knew how this would end._

"That's enough!"

 _Everyone froze and the cacophony ceased, followed by some of the crowd dispersing to reveal the two teams close to fighting on the Tower grounds. Lord Shaxx emerged from the Hall of Guardians, clearly pissed off at the commotion that started earlier. Nobody saw Shaxx leave his position before so many assumed it to be about the fight between Adam and Leon._

 _"Adam of Fireteam Sparta," he started, his booming voice silencing any form of chatter. "Do you have any reason as to why you continue to torment the Dark Knights? Or Spectre?"_

 _Adam's teammates continued to restrain him until he broke free of their hold, holding his weapon to the side and facing towards Shaxx. "I don't see as to why_ they _should stand among us Guardians if their Vanguard caused their exile in the first place," he growled, hatred seething through his tone and words. "Dark Knights have no place here in the Tower anymore. They're no Guardians. They're the enemy. As Guardians, we should stamp out the Darkness and we're letting five of them stand with us?!"_

 _"We have more knowledge of the Darkness than you Guardians. We fight for the Traveler even though we have no Light in us," Tohsaka stood up from the rest of her team, facing Shaxx as well. "And_ I _don't see why we Dark Knights receive a lot of distrust and hatred. Is it because of our history that caused our exile? The fact that we draw power from the Darkness? Or is it because of how much of a threat we could be?"_

 _Some of the Guardians started agreeing with the current Dark Knight vanguard before they were silenced. She made a valid point compared to Adam._

 _"I don't see why there are those that judge others based on their class's history or affiliation with the Light or Darkness. For all I know, Spectre was trustworthy even though he was a Dark Knight the whole time. He showed no signs of aggression against us," Shaxx noted, glancing between the two sides. "If there's only one way to settle this, then it's going to have to be done the Crucible way."_

 _The crowd sparked to life upon hearing 'Crucible', many placing bets on which side would win and siding with one side. Lightning took note of the reaction when the Crucible was mentioned, then comparing it to her people's own. In her village, Dark Knights fighting each other didn't fight in a Crucible but rather a duel or in some cases, Battle Royale at an arena._

 _"Lightning, as the more calm and collected between you and Adam, you may request the Crucible match."_

 _She didn't hesitate with her answer, and she knew what to say. "Clash won't help settle it, nor Elimination or Skirmish, so let's settle this the Dark Knight way. With a Battle Royale."_

 _Just as swift as the cacophony of the Guardians started, it ended quickly. Amongst the Guardians that were around longer than the Year 1 veterans, they knew what a Battle Royale was. Shivers were sent down their spines at the mention of the Crucible match format, as they knew what happened at the last Battle Royale. It was one of the more bloody Crucible matches but it upheld a bad reputation. It was a lot like Clash but there are multiple teams fighting each other until one team is left standing. When there were combatants unaffiliated with the other teams, then the rules shift over to last man standing. Ghosts were allowed but only to heal minor wounds._

 _"Battle Royale? We haven't had that kind of match for twenty years. That's against my protocol as Crucible Handler, Lightning," said Shaxx, crossing his arms at the suggestion. "The last time we had a Battle Royale, over half of the combatants were unable to be revived even with their Ghosts. Even with medical supplies around the battleground, it poses a risk against Guardians' lives."_

 _"That's why I suggested it. You really want to prepare the Guardians to fight against the Darkness, Lord Shaxx? Then they need to learn to survive if all else fails," Lightning looked at Artemis, who nodded in agreement. "However, that doesn't mean that I want Guardians to die. So here's my proposal, Lord Shaxx: if a Guardian dies in the match, have their Ghosts respawn them in a safe area where they cannot rejoin the fight. And to lower the risk of casualties, I suggest having only thirty combatants for this match including me and my team."_

 _"You're saying that they only have one life until they're eliminated from the match."_

 _"Yes. Throw in the Exposure modifier and you'll see how us Dark Knights are trained," like before, a sphere of Darkness manifested in Lightning's hand who brought it close to eye level. "As for the arena I want the Battle Royale to take place, I'll let Cloud take care of it. If we Dark Knights win, we don't want anything. Only to make Adam realize that underestimating your enemies can get you killed, whether it be by us or the enemies of the Tower." She crushed the sphere of Darkness in her hand, a dark mist dripping down like water._

 _Adam stepped in, face to face with Lightning. Both of them sent daggers towards the other, and a spark of itching for a fight shone in their eyes. "And if Sparta wins, then we want the Dark Knights out of the Tower. Including your damned brother."_

 _Lightning's anger grew when she heard the other side's victory condition, and already she didn't want to lose to Fireteam Sparta. Nero's still in the process of recovery and still in a coma, so the prevention of pulling the plug on him just fueled her further. Her blue eyes shifted to gold once again, but her familiar didn't manifest at all. She clenched a fist. "So be it. Now the Tower will know of the power we Dark Knights carry."_

 _"You don't scare me."_

 _"You should be, because we Dark Knights smothered the Light before. And I'm not afraid to give you a taste of how the Tenno perished from the Darkness."_

* * *

Lightning adjusted her gauntlets while the countdown continued to tick the seconds away, looking over the competition and checking the combatants from her HUD.

Fireteam Sparta, Blood Gulch, Valhalla, Nero Bianco, and nine 'Freelancers'. That makes five teams fighting against each other, including the _kazoku_. The Freelancers had some benefits, such as making alliances with other Freelancers or with other opposing teams. With Reaper among the combatants, it's fifty-fifty she'll ally with Nero Bianco or the _kazoku_.

Lightning glanced towards the large structure in the center and saw thirty packages marked with the emblems for the six teams, to which there were the combatants' weapons in them. She knew how Battle Royales worked and seeing as this arena had a similar layout to the one back home, she knew her first order of business once the match officially starts. That and the fact that the Shibuya district was practically Cloud's home turf, he'd have an advantage out here.

 _It was a good idea to let Cloud choose the battleground. Run through the plan and we'll win this match._ Her eyes fell upon the package that held both Dawneater and Dusk Repulsor inside, the blades glowing red and lighting up the symbols. Her Empress of the Abyss, combat knife, and silenced CP99 were inside as well, further adding to her need to grab it.

Tohsaka ran one last look at the other combatants. She was willing to put them down─including Nero Bianco and Reaper─to save Sparta for last. Before the match, she and the second-in-command turned temporary leader of her brother's Fireteam met up and said that no hard feelings were intended for Nero Bianco. Silver already acknowledged it and wanted to join the Battle Royale to see Adam's ass handed to him on a silver plate.

Lightning tightened her fist and readied herself like she was going to run track, her team doing the same. _Estimating how long it is from here to the weapon drop point, I might as well just tag and bag it. We got the entire district to ourselves, so no need to fight here at the park._ The timer reached the last five seconds, and the time was drawing near.

A siren rang out in the area, screaming through the woodland like a tsunami hit the area. Lightning already took off, running towards the drop point with her team not too far behind. Some of the other teams had done the same as the _kazoku_ , darting towards it at a breakneck pace. Lightning dared not to look back and focused on getting her weapons from the drop point. Already did she hear the sound of armor cracking and breaking and the screams of writhing pain in the wind.

Valhalla reached the weapon drop point before Lightning and the _kazoku_ did, and they got their hands on weapons. Carolina was the first out of her Fireteam to grab her gear and pry it open, releasing her weapons from the case. At the edge of her HUD she caught a glimpse of a combatant headed for their weapons.

Lightning followed after the cyan Bladedancer and reached for her own package sitting on a countertop. Just as it was within her reach, it was knocked off from the countertop. Swiftly, she backflipped away and dodged thrown knives from Valhalla's Bladedancer before she caught one of them and throwing it back to sender. The knife nicked Carolina in the arm forcing her to temporarily fall back and let the rest of her team collect their weapons. But not without a surprise for the Dark Knight.

The Dark Knight saw a sphere of light bouncing towards her and she instinctively moved out of the way. A shield conjured from Darkness materialized on her arm and defended herself with it. The grenade exploded, sending Lightning skidding against the dirt a few feet with the shield absorbing some of the blast. She knew it wasn't time to lower the shield. As if to confirm it, she felt the repeated hammering of rounds bouncing off the shield and knew that it was Carolina. Out of the corner of her eye she saw her weapons package on the ground. It tempted her to pick it up right now but she resisted the urge.

 _Not now! Until Carolina empties her magazines on me!_ Her shield grew to the size of the shields used by the Cabal Phalanxes and knelt down to counter the 'weight', allowing the barrage of rounds to hit the surface. But that didn't stop the cyan Bladedancer from attacking Lightning. Throwing down her gun she raced towards the shielding Dark Knight and kicked at the shield. Just before Lightning hit the ground on her back, she lifted her shield with her strength and launched Carolina into the air.

Again, Tohsaka backflipped from the momentum of Carolina's hit and returned on her feet her shield shrinking down to its original size. Quickly, she extended an arm towards her weapons package. The package started to shake and shudder in response to the action. Soon enough, the package suspended from the ground and into the waiting hand of the Dark Knight at the speed of light. Dawneater and Dusk Repulsor vanished from the confines of the pack and reappeared on her back, Dusk Repulsor in hand and its sheath placed on her back. The cyan Huntress landed on her feet and put her fists up in a fighting stance.

"No hard feelings, Lightning. I know this match is supposed to be between you and Sparta but I'm not just gonna worry about the other combatants. They're small fry compared to the major fighters here."

"Why do you think I suggested that thirty combatants enter this Battle Royale? If I can't get to Adam, then at least I can distract myself with others," responded Tohsaka, who was repeating the same stance as Carolina albeit with a sword and shield. "No hard feelings."

 _"Light! What the hell are you doing?!"_ yelled Leon through her comms channel. _"Fall back for now! You can fight her another time! We have to regroup with Cloud and Aqua!"_

Lightning looked over at the Bladedancer, who was still in her stance and waiting for her to make the first move. Behind her was a rampaging Adam headed not for Carolina but for her. She sheathed Dusk Repulsor and the shield dematerialized. "…Fine. We'll fight again at another time, Carolina. Enjoy the Battle Royale until then."

Lightning turned and ran into the outer reaches of the park, clutching her weapons pack under her arm. Like a master ninja, she vanished into the vegetation of the park never to be seen again. For now. The only thing the Huntress saw the last of the Dark Knight was her cape flowing as she ran.

Carolina knew why she ran off and did the same to meet up with the rest of Valhalla in another direction. She dodged Adam's attempt to lash out at her for letting the Dark Knight get away and kept on running through the vegetation. During her escape Carolina saw the Ghosts of three…no, five Guardians hovering about where their partners died. None of them were Valhalla and she figured she owes Church for pulling them out of the area. _Not Nero Bianco, not Blood Gulch, and definitely not Sparta. At least they're Freelancers. So, twenty-five are left. I'll enjoy this Lightning, and we_ will _see each other again. And when we do, we'll see if the Dark Knights really live up to what you said._

* * *

 **Me: Well, here we go. Another shot at a Crucible match for me!**

 **Prophet: Well, the previous one** ** _kinda_** **sucked.**

 **Me: It was for a comedic purpose. That's why it would seem like it'd suck.**

 **Prophet: Riiiiigggght.**

 **Me: Don't act like you know everything.**

 **Prophet: *mockingly* Don't act like you know everything.**

 **Me: Shut up. Right, I haven't done a response to reviews before so I suppose I'll try doing this. But before I get to that, I will say that the next few chapters will be focused on the Battle Royale. I don't know how many chapters exactly, but at least we get some action!**

 **Zach (Guest)─ Well, you got two of the things right. However, Cloud is the only character from Final Fantasy here as a guest. Lightning in this fic is an OC and has blonde hair with red tips but shares similarities from her FFXIII namesake like her attitude for one. And Chocobo? Cloud is sometimes called 'Chocobo head' for a reason. So, no giant chicken-duck…thing here.**

 **Also, thank you guys so much! This fic has reached over 4k views! So as a bounty, if you can guess the huge homage I paid Tribute to, then I will write a one-shot that is within** ** _Destiny: Skyfall_** **'s storyline requested by you! Just PM me your scenario and I'll do what I can to meet the scenario.**

 **As always, take care and keep fighting Guardians!**


	18. II-VI: Fight or Flight

**_Chapter VI: Fight or Flight_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _2207 Hours, December 17, 2714_

"What do we have, guys?"

Leon dug through his team's weapons packages he acquired while Valhalla was getting theirs, then at his team. "Aside from our weapons? Basic supplies. Food to barely last a day, a lighter that won't last long, and half of a standard medical kit," he threw down the lighter from his package and stomped on it as if to prove its worthlessness. Leon threw his girlfriend her package—which only contained her journal—but struggled to carry Cloud's to him. "Dammit Cloud, why did your swords have to be _this_ heavy?!"

Cloud stood up and walked over to the struggling Dark Knight, picking it up effortlessly. _"Fookasu. Kibarashi no tame no yochi ha nai desu._ Focus. There's no room for distractions here."

"Yeah, yeah."

"Don't tell me you're complaining, Leon," Lightning looked out into the wilderness of the district her HUD activating a thermal scope-like view. It zoomed in and out according to her eyes dilating and constricting. So far, the coast was clear. "We're expected to survive until the end of the match and you're just gonna throw in the towel?"

"Light, these supplies are just half of what we'd normally have in the Battle Royales back home. And no, I'm not throwing in the towel," objected Leon as he started fiddling around with a kunai-like throwing dagger before spinning it in his hand professionally. "No outside help for supplies or sponsors, stuck with a Fireteam that can't do shit and are better off as bulls in a china shop, another that can decently get the job done despite switching members with their sister Fireteam, your brother's Fireteam with a Hunter that can barely score any kills when he's in the Crucible but gets a shitload of kills against what the Guardians fight on the other planets, and of course, a certain three-man Fireteam with a bear of a Titan with a sore head."

Night already fell upon the battlefield that was the Shibuya district, enveloping the entirety of the area in a black blanket. Stars scattered around the skies and revealed the mesmerizing effect a clear night sky has on many. The _kazoku_ only heard the sound of crickets and the gentle breeze and hopefully not the sounds of possible bloodshed riding on the wind. Thanks to Cloud for knowing a safe zone in the Shibuya district, they all regrouped at the shrine that he uses as a base and a sanctuary.

"You think Reaper made it out alive?" Aqua sat against the wall with her weapons package at her side, the question pointed towards Tohsaka. The leader of the team leaned against the wall and looked out into the night sky towards the shining moon.

"She's not dumb enough to get herself killed at the start of the Battle Royale. Knowing her, she had the same idea as us and fled the scene after she got her weapons."

"It's just a matter of which team she allies with; us or Nero Bianco."

Lightning removed her helmet and continued to gaze at the moon before drawing out her father's knife. She inspected it before repeating Leon's knife spinning. "I'll stand guard. The rest of us get some sustenance and sleep. We'll go after some stragglers tomorrow." The kazoku agreed in unison and allowed Lightning to start the night watch before having a rather small dinner with a small fire at the center of the shrine lighted thanks to Aqua using some of her magic. One by one, the rest of the _kazoku_ fell asleep with Cloud being the only one sleeping back against the wall. After they all fell asleep, Lightning dug into the food available in her pack and tore off a chunk of bread. She tore the chunk into berry-like pieces and popped one in her mouth, slowly chewing on the wheat. Her own combat knife appeared in her other hand and threw it towards the torii gate like a Gunslinger.

The blade hit the side of the Shinto archway, impaling itself tip first. As the moon continued to shine on the Shibuya district in its hypnotic light the knife's blade reflected the light mesmerizingly. A reflection shone on the aged wood resembling the emblem emblazoned on her cape and used by her mother. Darkness, in spite of its mostly used definition of the unknown and evil showed how wonderful it could be if used in a way the Light is. Its potential could've been realized if Trionus and the first generation Dark Knights hadn't started slaughtering hundreds of Guardians.

 _Father… I swear I will set this right. Both Nero and I. We will restore your name and find a way for our class to return home._ Lightning closed her eyes in a meditative state. She swore that as the breeze gently blew she heard her father's voice riding on the wind. He approved of his children's mission to clear his name and encouraged them to never stray from it. An apparition of her father manifested itself at her side, glancing at the moon with its hands behind its back.

 _"Just because you and Nero bear the title of 'Primus Ultima' doesn't mean you are a true Dark Knight. It is only a title, given to those that have walked the path of Darkness than they can take and come back sane. There is no significance to be obtained from being a Primus Ultima. A true Dark Knight learns to persevere when the odds aren't in your favor,"_ the ghostly voice said, the rhythm of the words mimicking that of Trionus's. _"The Darkness doesn't control us, nor do we control it. With a clear mind and concentration the Darkness becomes our ally. A friend. Without these qualities it can control us, tempt us into doing what we don't want to do. The same goes for those that find the Darkness as a weapon or a tool for us. Such foolish thoughts lead to our downfall. A true Dark Knight never relies on anger and vengeance to fuel them in battle; it only serves as an invitation for the Darkness to start corrupting us."_

"…But what about you, father? What did you see the Darkness as?"

The original Tenno-Dark Knight vanguard faced his daughter, a warm smile on his stern face before fading away. _"I saw it as a harnessable power. Something harnessable like the Light was. But I was wrong,"_ he summoned a sphere of Darkness in his hand, the surface reminiscent to a crystal ball. _"Over the course of when I became the first Dark Knight to my execution after the Tenno-Dark Knight War was when I realized that it was as it was said to be. It was, as your brother had put it, a curse. I was ignorant back then, Tohsaka. A damned fool."_

"I don't see it that way, father," she sat down on the steps to the shrine and hugged her knees to her chest, looking up at the moon. It was starting to get cold. She lost track of how long she was on night watch. It could be past midnight already. "I know the Darkness is frowned upon if Guardians use it. I don't see the Dark Knights using it as a curse; I see it as a second Light. It may not be kind to us and tempt us into doing things we don't want to do, but this may be our last hope if the Light fails us. I know that the Darkness can be used against itself and a part of it can fight for the Traveler. You experimented that and it worked."

 _"I know that you've asked yourself why I don't see you as my successor to both my name and power and that I often praise Nero. I sense that you doubt that you can ever live up to your heritage,"_ Lightning looked up at her father's apparition immediately after she heard him talk about her doubt. _"Tohsaka, you're already living up to both my name and expectations. I only praised your brother when he understood the mistakes he made and corrected it. In fact, he even doubted himself too. My expectations of my children are different from the Cyphers' expectations and already are you two fulfilling it. A true Dark Knight doesn't rely on brute strength and using the Darkness as much as the Guardians use their Light. We discipline ourselves, learn from our mistakes, understand if the odds are against us, and most importantly know both our enemy and ourselves."_

"But, what about my—?"

 _"Your actions of saving his life that day at the risk of your own is another trait that we Dark Knights cherish,"_ it sat down next to Tohsaka, glancing up at the moon as well. _"Well, I wouldn't say it's a trait that Dark Knights cherish. It makes you more like your mother. The similarities between you and your mother are almost alike that I wonder if you inherited anything from me."_

"Well, I _do_ have your ability of fighting against a horde of the enemy and making it out alive. That and your idea of the bigger picture."

 _"True,"_ the glow that the apparition created started to flicker out on it and he got back on his feet. _"Tohsaka, I have to go. But before I do, I have something to tell you."_

"What is it, father?"

 _"Nero…he may return to the fight sooner than you think."_

Before Lightning could ask it to clarify what it meant, the spirit vanished from its place. The wind had lowered to a subtle breeze as suddenly as the ghost of her father disappeared back into the afterlife and her red-tipped flaxen hair delicately flew about in the night wind. She felt relief and the need for answers rise in her battling it out until one stands victorious. _Return to the fight sooner than I think? But…how? The poison's hindering the process of his healing. How can it be?_

* * *

 _Great, just when I thought having supplies like this would_ actually _help me in this environment._ Reaper grumbled mentally as she fiddled around with her lighter. It barely started and if she got it to light, the flame would only last for a few seconds before being extinguished by the wind. _Can't always expect Shaxx to give Guardians the high quality gear. Then we'd all go after each other's throats._ Frustrated, she chucked the useless lighter far away from her hiding place. _Just when I thought this would last the normal twelve or so minutes, turns into a full out twelve hours._ She wanted to get warmer, but her armor had forsaken the feature for body heat regulation for her amplifying her stealth duration. Cursing herself for not equipping herself properly, she hugged herself and sat against one of the ledges in a fetal position on the floor. Even wrapping herself in her cloak didn't help.

Reaper found refuge on one of the roofs of the countless buildings surrounding the park, allowing her to hide in plain sight thanks to some aspects of the roof. With her vantage point, she could scope out the competition and scout out for any supply drops. Using the scope from her Tamar-D, with an added night vision function active, she checked around the starting area. Then, her sight shifted to the drop ship hovering above the Shibuya district; the ship carrying the five revived Guardians that died in the match. _Five Freelancers out. Quite unbelievable for someone like Adam to let the bigger fish go and take out five of us small fry._ She had no obligation to join forces with the other three Freelancers. Well, maybe except one.

 _Where the hell is he?_ She shivered, grasping her Strength of the Pack tightly. Her helmet didn't help her as well as it started to make small white clouds from her breath and decided to remove it. A bit of a bad idea. The cold winter wind slapped her in the face and goose bumps were starting to show on both her face and under her armor. And the fact that it was a snowing December didn't help either. _I swear to the Traveler if he doesn't show up, then I'll─!_

Her mental cursing at her partner was silenced as she felt her body being moved upright. Under her cloak, she tried to draw out her knife but a hand reached for her wrist and lifted her grasp from the handle. She wanted to scream for help if Adam had somehow found her. Instead, they gently placed a hand on her cheek before leaning in and kissed her. Her protests were muffled by the act as the hand on her cheek started caressing it affectionately with a thumb. As swift as the kiss was, Reaper stopped her protests and gave in to the kiss. The hand around her wrist shifted over to her hair brushing some of the strands covering her face behind her ear, and Reaper cupped the other's face with both of her hands.

The two broke apart from the moment, hand still on Reaper's face and the two looked at each other in the eyes. Their foreheads touched each other's own and gray eyes met a heterochromic blue and gold, both of which were shining as bright as the moon. Such heterochromic eyes belonged to a Hunter in the same shader as she was albeit with red linings all across his body. Her partner in the Battle Royale. Excalibur, better off known as 'Combatant 30' in this Battle Royale was the Freelancer that joined the match at literally the last second. Even his name in the roster stated 'Combatant 30' instead of Excalibur.

"Sorry I'm late," the Guardian said in a faint English accent, still cupping a hand on her face. "The Fireteam proved to be a little tougher to handle than I thought."

"Do you have any idea how long I waited for you? I thought you were killed!"

"It's going to take more than Blood Gulch to bring me down. Here," he noticed the shivering Bladedancer's quivering body and unbuckled his cloak, wrapping it around the Freelancing Predator like a blanket. "You'll need it more than I do tonight."

"That's not what I'm talking about, Excalibur! I'm talking about the fact that you should take it easy!" argued Reaper, wrapping herself tightly at the two cloaks being her shield against the cold. "Straining yourself might reopen your wounds and your healing's still─!"

"Enough, Reaper. I'm here, I didn't push myself than I should, and I lessened the competition by eliminating the pathetic of the Tower's Fireteams," Excalibur sat next to the Bladedancer and letting her rest her head on his shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll be fine."

"You're stubborn, you know that? Stubborn and have an ego. You were never stubborn or had an ego before."

"Well, I suppose being in charge of a group did have to make me change into something like Zavala. The group's still active but I'm not yet ready to retake my place."

"How did you do it? Taking down Blood Gulch without straining yourself, I mean."

The Hunter looked at his partner, and a grin formed on his face. "The only thing Blood Gulch is known for is their stupidity and unable to work with each other as a Fireteam. So how do you think I eliminated them?"

"You used their one weakness to your advantage."

"Exactly."

 ** _Earlier that evening…_**

"Simmons! Where the hell's that fire!?"

Blood Gulch, unlike the _kazoku_ , was stuck out in a barren area of the Shibuya district in close proximity to the park where the Battle Royale started. Given that the winter weather was starting to show signs of a mild snowfall, it was highly unlikely that anyone would've survived in these conditions.

The maroon Warlock sat in front of a pile of wood and raised his head towards the red Titan. "Sir, with all due respect, there's just no way we can start a fire with this thing!" Simmons pointed out with the lighter that came with everyone's weapons packages, then throwing it on the ground frustratingly. "That and the fact that it's snowing out here means we can't!"

Sarge held his Universal Remote close and filled the lighter full of shotgun shells. Unexpectedly to Blood Gulch, the lighter burst into flames…which only lasted for a few seconds until being extinguished. "Damn it! Who's idea was it to have us in a snowing environment for a battleground!?"

"Uh, sir, I believe that would be Cloud," Grif pointed out.

"Like a cloud in the sky?" asked Caboose, his damaged mind clearly confusing the Dark Knight Cloud for an actual cloud.

"No, Caboose. We're talking about the Dark Knight that's a part of Lightning's team." Washington corrected.

"Grif! Go back to the park and get us some firewood! Your possible insignificant death at the hands of Sparta will provide us time to hide from them and not be the first team eliminated from this match!"

Grif growled at the order and rolled his eyes under his helmet. "Up yours sir!"

Sarge responded with reloading his Universal Remote and blasting the snow-laiden ground under Grif's feet. Some of the pellets burrowed itself into the armored boot but a majority of them found itself in the snow. The orange Titan started dancing to avoid his feet being shot to smithereens and ran for the park. Grif vanished into the snow-covered vegetation running like a cowardly Rez.

A shadow of a winged creature remained perched on the lamppost in Blood Gulch's hiding place. Curious, its head tilted sideways towards the team while remaining hidden from their sight. The golden slit eyes of the creature switched from watching Blood Gulch to the moon. As it continued to eavesdrop on Blood Gulch the sound of a four note melody rode on the wind, causing it to perk its head up and quietly repeat the melody. Purring gently after the exchange, the creature spread its wings—scaly and reptilian—and flew off into the night. It fled to the park where the melody came from and perched itself on a branch. The landing wasn't as good but it was adorable to watch it try to latch on the slippery branch until it hung upside down like a bat. Squealing at hanging upside down it squirmed about until its claws slipped from the branch and the creature started to plummet to the ground, but not before a hand reached out and caught it.

"You okay?" the creature opened its eyes and saw a Hunter hanging around on the branches. It purred adorably before spreading its wings and flying over to his shoulder. "At least you're safe, buddy. This cold's starting to get on my bloody nerves." Tiny flames spewed out of its mouth before it shut its mouth closed, smoke emerging from the nostrils. It chirped and cried, almost like the creature was attempting to speak in a human tongue.

"They're close, buddy?" Excalibur asked his companion, petting it on the head gently. The creature roared affirmatively and enjoyed the petting, nuzzling its head against the Hunter's hand. In his night vision-esque view, he saw his companion's form; a tiny, black and gray baby dragon the size of an adult bird. Its wings were both leathery and tough as diamonds, a red glow appearing between the scales of its chest that vaguely resembled a dragon's head. "Good work, Nyx. Here you go, bud." He held out a piece of bread from his weapon package in front of the dragon to which it started to sniff and nibble at the wheat before proceeding to devour it. After finishing its reward, Nyx cried for more food and started poking around his pouches around his belt before Excalibur took the dragon in his hands and putting it back on his shoulder. "Later, bud. Go back to Reaper now, okay?"

The infant dragon whined before spreading its wings and leaving, leaving the Hunter to conduct his work. Excalibur stood up from his perch on the branch, maintaining his balance as he did. A pain in his side shot through his body and hissed painfully. He warned himself to take it easy but there was no way he'd stand in the sidelines and watch the Battle Royale from the Tower. Excalibur sat back down on the branch and reached for his pouches, pulling out a single painkiller. Popping it in and swallowing it without water, he waited a while for the impure pain to pass and pulled out a boxy, heavy handcannon-like weapon from his lower back. He loaded a box magazine into the rear of the slide and pumped the shotgun pump-like slide on the bottom of the barrel. An indicator appeared next to the safety button, confirming how many shots was in the magazine. Nine.

"Stupid Sarge…wish I could take the son of a bitch out myself, see how he likes being in my shoes…"

Excalibur looked down from his perch and saw the orange Titan that was Dexter Grif collecting some firewood. A rather large pile was in his hands arranged like logs and he stumbled around like an idiot. He crouched down on the branch, closely observing the Titan. Soon enough, an idea clicked in his head and a smile formed on his lips. His finger was on the trigger but not ready to pull it yet. _Let's see how Blood Gulch can get out of this trick…_

 ** _-Destiny-_**

"Grif! I thought you were killed off by Sparta!" Sarge commented, seeing the approaching Grif emerging from the sea of trees. "Where the hell's the firewood?!"

Said Titan rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, sir. I was attacked by Adam so I had to get the hell out of there before my balls are punched."

"D-dammit Grif! Why d-didn't you do as I a-asked you to?!"

"Uh, Sarge? You asked him to _g-get firewood_ , not get himself k-killed." Simmons butted in, hugging his shoulders from the cold. The temperatures were dropping badly and already did the rest of Blood Gulch are starting to suffer from the early signs of hypothermia.

"Simmons, s-shut up."

"Ugggh… Hey g-g-guys?" a shadow stumbled from the unknown in the park as though they had a bad hangover and already were the rest of Blood Gulch up in arms. Sarge aimed his Universal Remote at the shadow, followed by Grif, Simmons, Washington, and Caboose. Normally Blood Gulch would be half-assed prepared for any scenario, but they weren't ready for this.

"What in the doggone name of Sam Hell, Betty bloomers goddamn tarnation is going on here?!"

"G-Grif?!"

The rest of Blood Gulch couldn't believe their eyes. The shadow and Grif stood before the other, and both the stumbling figure and the rest of Blood Gulch took a while until they realized what was in front of them. And when they realized it, the realization hit them like an anvil was dropped on their heads.

"Who the hell's the real Grif?"

"Dammit, now there's two of him!"

Both Grifs responded with an 'I am!' in unison before glaring at each other. Idiotically, when one Grif did something the other Grif mirrored it flawlessly. It went from flipping the bird, to cracking the knuckles, and unexpectedly stomping the ground angrily and clutching at their helmet. One of the two were already getting pissed off at the other mocking/mimicking his every move and threw a left hook. The other Grif recoiled badly from the punch as he did the exact same thing and jawed Grif 2. Even their recoil from the left hooks were mimicked and it was seriously starting to get stale.

"Damn, I hit hard!"

"Or I just have a glass jaw," spat Grif 1, readjusting his jaw. Grif 2 crossed his arms and tapped his foot, angry as hell as he stared at his own reflection standing before him.

"Simmons," Sarge pumped his Universal Remote and faced the Warlock. "How do we tell which one's the real Grif?"

Simmons cupped his chin and tapped his foot. "I think a matter of─"

"No 'ten questions'! It'll take too long!"

"What about eenie meeny miny moe?" suggested Caboose and the rest of Blood Gulch turned towards him.

"Son, that might as well be one of the doggone best ideas I've heard from a bluetard!" Sarge turned around and looked at the two Grifs, pointing Universal Remote at Grif 2.

"Eenie…" Grif 1.

"Meeny…" back at Grif 2.

"Miny…" the shotgun was still pointed at Grif 2.

"Mo." After the slight exchange of Caboose's idea, the shotgun landed on the Grif that first returned from the park. The rest of Blood Gulch summoned their weapons from their inventory and aimed it at Grif 1.

"You're the fake! Die!"

Just before Sarge could pull the trigger on his shotgun, 'Grif' threw down a smoke bomb and prompted the rest of Blood Gulch to open fire at the cloud of smoke. Shouts of where is he and pain erupted from the group like a symphony on a sour note as they unloaded their guns into the smoke. Somehow, the smoke had affected their HUDs by scrambling it like an EMP and forcing their onboard computers to reboot. The fake Grif was already airborne above the smoke cloud before his armor morphed into a black and red Hunter's armor. As luck would've had it, Fireteam Blood Gulch, in all of their stupidity, bought into the 'impostor Grif' trick!

Excalibur already drew out his heavy handheld weapon and aimed down at the Fireteam. The smoke had already dispersed and the Fireteam knew they were screwed as soon as they looked up. O'Malley managed to pull out Gjallarhorn from his inventory and aimed the rocket launcher at the Hunter.

"TASTE OBLIVION, YOU DECEIVING FOOL!"

"Personally, I'd prefer tasting victory of defeating such a useless bunch, thank you very much." Before O'Malley could get a lock on him and pull the trigger, he felt like time─and himself─come to a complete halt. It was only Excalibur that was still moving the evidence of it his cloak dancing about in the soothing winter wind.

The black and red Hunter held down the trigger on his heavy handheld weapon, hearing a whine like the startup of a ship coming from the weapon. In his vision, which tinted the world and the Guardians below him in a monochromic haze, Excalibur watched the nine rounds in the transparent magazine lower themselves into the chamber of the weapon and a holographic indicator appeared on his HUD. It marked the points of impact as the weapon charged up and once there were nine dots on screen, he smirked.

"Bull's eye." Excalibur saw the cue on his holographic indicator and pulled the trigger back fully. The weapon finished charging up and fired all nine rounds at once. As Excalibur got out of the threat zone his weapon would make based on the warning his HUD made and previous handlings of the weapon, the nine rounds came into a hexagon with a center triangle formation. All nine rounds hit the ground in unison and detonated into a massive explosion, leaving no one alive as the very wide blast radius ensured that chances of surviving were slim to none. Even Gjallarhorn's loaded rocket detonated from within the weapon, lowering the chances of living the blast to negative one hundred.

After Excalibur got back on the ground away from the blast zone, he stayed in a crouching pose for a while and watched the fires from the explosion dancing about in the cold wind. Under his helmet, he felt some form of accomplishment and content as he watched the embers continue to fall like snow.

"Well, I suppose that should compensate for your lack of a fire."

* * *

 **Me: Well, that settles that.**

 **Prophet: With Fireteam Blood Gulch eliminated from this match, which leaves four left still in the fight. So far, this makes the number of eliminated combatants up to eleven and we're still kicking in for some action.**

 **Me: What's with the entire 'announcer' deal, Prophet? That's not your job.**

 **Prophet: Just felt like it.**

 **Me: Fair enough. Putting this chapter together was a real pain, since I tried to maintain some kind of memorable lines from Red vs Blue and the chaos of the Crucible in one package. Ah well.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-V): Well, I didn't say that North and South were holding hatred for the Dark Knights. Yes, I did bear in mind that hostility is a part of South's nature and that North doesn't have any grudge or distrust towards the Dark Knights. In fact, I was referring to Adam's friends (excluding his Fireteam partners) that were in deep waters now.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-IV): Trust me, this is probably the 7(?), 10(?) time I've actually written family/bonding moments. And that's not just counting the ones from** ** _Destiny: Skyfall_** **. Then again, a year or so of picking up new writing techniques did pay off to make the reader feel something. And with the aforementioned 'Heir'? They'll show up eventually… Just have patience until then.**

 **So until we meet again, keep fighting the Darkness until they surrender, Guardians!**


	19. II-VII: Preparing

**_Chapter VII: Preparing_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _00501 Hours, December 18, 2714_

Dawn broke through the sky in the Shibuya district, revealing a snow-covered ruins of a district in Old Tokyo both mesmerizing and a pity that such a city fell from the Dark Age. Day started its siege on the night and fought for territory like Guardians fighting for zones in Control, slowly but surely winning the night's territory over. And unlike the Guardians' struggle with the Darkness to win back the Solar System, dawn was doing it efficiently and quickly. In this battle, dusk has fallen and retreated ready to fight again once its numbers were enough to smother the day.

Amongst the first to awaken from their rest, Cloud looked around at the camp he and the _kazoku_ had set up in his shrine. The fireplace in the center of the shrine had lost its flames leaving behind cinders and ashes at the bottom of the firewood. Rays of the morning tore through some of the holes and cracks in the shrine's architecture as arrows of light, leaving their marks. There was even tiny piles of snow that formed around the bottom of the holes reminding him of how old this place was. A minor temptation to start boarding up the place nibbled in his head but he knew that there was a Crucible match going on right now.

 _I can deal with it once this is over with._ Groggily, Cloud got up from his sleeping place and looked out towards the entrance towards the shrine. Aqua was still sleeping peacefully near the fireplace in spite of the wooden floor and Leon was still resting against the wall, occasionally muttering death threats in his sleep concerning the execution of his older sister.

However his only concern was the leader of the five-man team. Again, he glanced at the opened doors of the shrine. Sitting at the steps towards the shrine was Tohsaka, back against the wall and head tilted to the side. Cloud sighed and walked over to the Dark Knight on night watch duty. Her helmet was at her side directed towards the torii gate to which he saw a knife stuck to it.

 _Definitely asleep, that's for sure._ Lightning appeared to be in a peaceful slumber against the wall, arm on her bent kneecap and her other hand holding her father's knife. Some of the snow from last night found their way on her hair and face making her look like a complete princess in the snow. Instead of staring in awe at the sleeping Dark Knight, Cloud's glance shifted to her knife-holding hand.

Instead of being black and red, her entire arm from the hand to the elbow was a different color. A faint aura of color ended at her elbow enveloping the region in a color he wouldn't expect at all. Silverish-white and gold. This wasn't the sun's doing. Of course, Cloud knew what the colors meant.

A Tenno.

Cloud crouched down and looked at her arm that had shifted colors from a Dark Knight's to a Tenno's. As he observed the bizarre phenomenon, the aura crawled further up her arm cleansing the oily black with white and eroding the red with gold. He dared to reach out to the arm and check if it was either a hallucinogenic effect or an actual thing.

Just when his armored fingers were inches away from the gauntlet, a hand reached for his wrist and held onto it. Hard.

Tohsaka slowly moved her head, eyes opening to the morning light and holding Cloud's wrist in an iron grip. "And just what do you think you're doing, Cloud?"

Cloud smiled faintly and moved his wrist out of her grip. _"Ohayo gozaimasu, Raitoningu._ Good morning, Lightning," out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the gauntlet revert back to black and red, the colors of the Tenno no more. _"Yoku nemure mashitaka?_ Did you sleep well?"

"Standing watch outside a shrine for the last seven or so hours? No, no I didn't." Lightning swept the snow from her hair and fixed it as though she wasn't hell's angel. "Why are you up at this time?"

 _"_ _Kochira ni ki te watashino tsuujou no ruuchin desu. Nanito omotta watashiha koko de subete meisou?_ It's my normal routine since I got here. What, you thought all I did here was meditate?"

"Good point."

Both Dark Knights sat side by side with each other on the entrance and watched the sunrise. Before their eyes, the once black sky started to turn into many shades of orange, gold and red and blue fading in like ink. As the phenomena went on before them, Lightning opened her package and popped another berry-sized chunk of bread, chewing it everso slowly like last night. 'Survival of the fittest must come from surviving with what you have and can get.', that was what one of her mentors back in the village told her. She lived off of rather small sustenance during her tests and missions, lasting longer than the rest in her subclass.

 _"Mada ta ni anata no isan no hanbun wo akusesu suru shiyo u to shite i masu ka?_ You're still trying to access the other half of your heritage?"

Tohsaka looked at her free hand, the colors of the Tenno returning to her hand instantly. "I suppose you could say that. Honestly, I don't care if I use the Light or Darkness to draw my abilities and powers from. A balance would work out for me; I can't just stick to one side of the spectrum for the rest of my life."

 _"Wakatte i masu. Vesupaa to Reon no nakade kika se watashitachi no chiisana 'kazoku' ano hi naze de ha nakatta ka?_ I know. Wasn't that why you let Vesper and Leon in our little 'family' that day?" Cloud continued to glance at the rising sun, occasionally looking at Lightning and the little secret that she and her brother shared. " _Watashiha murazentai wo watashitachi to tamuro no nokemono wo sa seru tame no aidea de tokini sukoshifungai shimashita._ I was a little outraged at the time at the idea of letting the outcasts of the entire village hang out with us."

"Judging based on character or history never gets people far. You know it, I know it, we all know that. I felt sorry for their situation and wanted to let them know that there are Dark Knights like us that aren't hostile towards ones born with Light and Darkness in their blood," mournfully she looked at her color-shifted hand and closed it into a fist, the energy of the Void emanating from within it. "Vesper and Leon weren't the only ones born with a parent full of Light and another of Darkness. Nero and I are too born with such parents. Besides, all of us were orphaned at such a young age; whether it be from the war or from being abandoned by our parents."

 _"Sono toori desu. Shoujikina tokoro ha, watashino ryoushinwo shira nakatta. Namato shi no gainen wo rikai suru mokoto ga dekiru maeni shin da. Watashiha anata to karera ga shin da maeni anata no ryoushinwo shitte iru anata no kyoudaino shitto._ You're right. Honestly, I never knew my parents. Died before I could even comprehend the concept of life and death. I'm envious of you and your brother knowing your parents before they died."

"I only knew my mother, not my father. I know that my father was Trionus because of Nero," Tohsaka started fiddling around with her father's knife. "The Cyphers said that his familiar was the dragon during the Tenno-Dark Knight War. Truthfully, getting the dragon as your familiar was one in a million. You gotta be either really worthy or really lucky, because heritage never plays a role to our familiars. Yet, Nero's familiar was the dragon even though he never used the Darkness in his initiation."

 _"…doragon no namano chikarato sa re te i masu. Tennou to Kurai Kishi no tsuyosa no chouten. Namano chikaraha ryuuwo eru koto wo hoshou shite i nai ga, shinno Ankoku Kishi no pasu wo tadotte i ta._ The dragon…a being of raw power and strength. The pinnacle of the strength of the Tenno and Dark Knights. But raw power didn't guarantee you getting the dragon; it was following the path of a true Dark Knight," Cloud recalled about the familiar type and had his own familiar, Fenrir, to manifest and be by his side. _"Cyphers ha tsukai ma ga iru to ryouhoutousha no tsuyomito jakuten wo hanei suru iru to nobe ta. Inishieeshon de watashitachi ha rei to, Cyphers no ryouhouni jibun jishin wo shoumeishimatashi ta. Shikashi, rei ikutsu ka ha warewareno pafoomansu ni motodhui te sorera wo eran de watashitachi no kawari ni watashitachi wo pikkuappu shimasu. Anata to watashiwo e ta ookami, Reon no data Griever, Akua kanojo jishin toshite reivun, Vesupaa motte i ta koyoote to mochiron o niisan ha doragon._ The Cyphers said that familiars reflect who we are and both our strengths and weaknesses. In the initiations, we proved ourselves to both the spirits and the Cyphers. But some of the spirits pick us instead of us picking them based on our performance. You and I got the wolf, Leon's was the Griever, Aqua had the raven as her own, Vesper got the coyote, and of course your brother has the dragon."

"Now you're starting to sound like my father."

 _"Hareha watashitachi no subete ni eikyou wo uke ta shinno Ankoku Kishi ga watashitachi kara keien, sa re te ichi tsu no Cyphers no shinnenni okikae de aru koto no kareno houhou, ichi tsu ha kesshite wasure nai baai demo hito ha sore wo subete hajime ta. Dakarakoso kono basho ha watashino seiiki. Shinno Ankoku Kishi de aru koto no anata no chichino oshie wo tsuikyuusuru koto ga deki masu._ He influenced us all. Even if his method of being a true Dark Knight is shunned from us and replaced with the Cyphers' beliefs of being one, one never forgets who started it all. That's why this place is my sanctuary; so that I can pursue your father's teachings of being a true Dark Knight."

 _"Attention all Guardians in the Battle Royale,"_ Lord Shaxx's voice broke through their trains of thought, appearing at the corner of their HUDs and through a hologram above the dropship. _"Welcome to day two of the Battle Royale. From now to oh eight hundred hours, all Guardians are allowed to use supply and weapon drops to change equipment and gear from both your inventory and vault. Drop canisters will be dropped based on your inputted coordinates and contain either supplies or weapons depending on the drop canister you selected. Once you are done changing your weapons and armor, the canister will automatically return to the dropship; you have one chance to use them and cannot recall them until the designated times tonight and tomorrow morning. Medical supplies will be dropped in designated locations around the combat zone. Nineteen of you remain in this match, so remember that only one team can remain standing. Good luck to you all."_

* * *

Excalibur stood at the rooftop he and Reaper had set up camp as Shaxx made his announcements. As the Crucible handler announced the authorization of drop canisters, the roster with all thirty combatants appeared by his side. The first five that have been eliminated from the match were all taken out by Adam—no doubt in blind anger—had their names erased from the roster while they were in the dropship waiting for the match to end. Fireteam Blood Gulch followed after the first five eliminated and flashed 'Eliminated by: Combatant 30' on both his HUD and holographic projection before the Fireteam's names were swept off.

 _Good. At least I got their attention now._ The Hunter drew out a Golden Gun and aimed out into the horizon. After a while, he spun the weapon and holstered it the weapon fading into Solar embers and into nothing, revealing The Last Word under the Golden Gun. _It won't be long until either one starts hunting us down. Thought the multi-kill would draw their attention enough to get them to notice, guess I acted as a threat to them. Might as well get my best gear and guns before it's off with my head._

Excalibur opened a device from his pack and tapped into the dropship's channels, marking the coordinates he wants his weapons drop to land. As much as he was a Guardian he had no obligation to summon his Ghost and tell him/her to mark the coordinates. Glancing over his shoulder and seeing the Bladedancer still asleep with the double layer cloak shielding her from the snowfall last night, he only grinned faintly. Next to her was her Tamar-D, barrel pointed towards the sky and stock just feet away from the ledge.

"Reaper, time to wake up," coaxed Excalibur, nudging her shoulder gently. "We've caused a bit of an attention grab on the other teams and I doubt this place will hide us for much longer."

Slowly but surely, Reaper came to and yawned stretching her arms towards the sky. By the way she yawned, the Gunslinger figured she had a good night's rest. Even if it was for four hours. Just as she lowered her arms, she accidentally knocked her hand into the sleeping creature next to her sniper rifle. It hit the infant dragon on the head and Nyx stirred awake, crying and squealing like a baby would before spewing a tiny ball of flame into the palm of her hand.

"Ow! What was that for, Nyx?!" Reaper jumped away from the tiny dragon and held her hand stinging from the flames, the cloaks still enveloping her like a robe. The infant dragon snarled at the Huntress with all the hostility it had for its age, tail raised and fire starting to form in its mouth. Reaper reached out towards her sniper rifle to get it away from the dragon, but it bit one of her gloved fingers in defense. "I only want to get my rifle!"

Nyx raised its head towards the heavens and trotted over to the rifle, knocking it over with its tail to the degree that it was lying on the roof and landing on the side of the magazine well. With its developing claws, Nyx scratched the side of the well as it kneaded its paws on the area. It yawned before curling up and falling back asleep on the rifle.

"Should've been more careful, then. Intimidating a dragon, be it accidental or on purpose, isn't a good idea at all," Excalibur clicked his tongue and catching the attention of the Huntress.

"How was I supposed to know that Nyx would be right there?!"

"You have to remember that Nyx grew fond of us when we found it at the Tower. Well, you found it hanging around on the balcony. Saw us as its parents maybe."

Reaper glanced back at her Tamar-D where the infant dragon was sleeping peacefully on it and rolling around adorably. She didn't stay mad at it for long and massaged the palm of her hand and her bitten finger. "I swear we're gonna have to get Nyx to Hiccup and Toothless so we can find out its gender and maybe even how to care for one. That and its acting pompous when it feels like it."

"Once this is over with. I doubt it wants to separate with us. Became too attached to us," cautiously, Excalibur reached out towards the black and gray dragon and stroked its head. Nyx stirred and nuzzled against his hand as it slept, purring. "You want to get your weapons from the weapon drop?"

"I know I'm going to need it," responded Reaper, handing back Excalibur's Neuroghast Cloak who clasped it back on and put on his hood, a Celestial Nighthawk materializing and hiding his face behind the visor.

"That's why I asked," the next thing the duo knew, two drop canisters landed on the roof like missiles raining down even though their landings were quiet. Good enough since Nyx was still asleep. The canisters opened at once, revealing the arsenal the two-man team had selected for the Battle Royale including a terminal to access their vaults' inventory.

Reaper's was full with a wide selection of Tamar-Ds—each one with different upgrades designed for high range and scopes to further compliment the high range—and magazines filled with skip, high caliber, and explosive rounds. Her Night Predator was in her inventory and had its fair share of malfunctions, prompting her to take a maintenance kit from the canister and allow Rex to store it in her inventory.

Excalibur's, on the other hand, was completely loaded to the brim with weapons never seen before by Guardians. Some of them looked like sidearms with their magazines styled like auto rifles, revolvers and handcannon-like guns, and weapons that appear to deal damage with energy rather than bullets. The Gunslinger pulled out his handheld rocket launcher that he used to eliminate Blood Gulch and toggled the safety, the weapon ejecting the loaded magazine and sealing the chamber. _I won't be needing this. They might know the deal and take advantage of the charging time. Even if I fire the rockets one at a time, it won't be enough to take one down before they can eliminate me._ He placed the weapon which he dubbed 'Angstrum' on a rack designed to hold it and reached for a pair of sidearms. After inspecting the pair of sidearms, Excalibur removed the magazines and checked them before loading them back in. Just as the magazines were reloaded the weapon automatically chambered the first round in unison for him.

His eyes then set itself on the middle of the canister and reached for the weapon. A weapon both elegant and extremely deadly by its looks alone rested on the rack, and its firepower alone screamed that it and its user should be feared for once its pointed at a victim. For what Excalibur had pulled out from its rack was a double-barrel shotgun, its name inscribed on the wooden-metallic hybrid stock dubbing it 'Tigris'. Breaking open the top of the shotgun, Excalibur saw that it was all loaded like his twin pistols and sealed it shut, a satisfying clicking emerging when the weapon was closed. Equipping Tigris in his primary slot, leaving his Last Word in his inventory, and his dual pistols in his special slot, he only had to deal with a heavy weapon.

Excalibur glanced over at a rectangular compartment hidden behind the energy weapons. He reached out for it but stopped himself, hand alternating between clenching into a fist and a reaching gesture. _...No. I don't need them. Not now. When the time comes for me to use them, then I will._ He pulled back his hand and let the canister seal itself shut, punching in the command to send it back to the dropship. It fled without warning once the 'return' command was punched in, fleeing as fast as it arrived. Reaper's canister followed suit soon after Excalibur's, leaving the Hunter-Huntress duo with their new arsenal.

"So, who do we go after first?" asked Reaper, chambering a round into her other Tamar-D and hugging it close to her body.

The Gunslinger knelt on the ledge and looked downward, scanning the area below and listening for any sound cues since any Guardian can be hidden below the snow-covered vegetation. Under his helmet's visor, Excalibur focused and drowned out any noise around him from his mind. He finetuned his audio receptors to pick up any distant sounds and listened.

Cawing from local birds was the first thing he heard and he witnessed an entire flock of them leaving in a hurry. Their cawing didn't indicated a form of moving south. It was of an urgent panic to flee. A pained scream rang out at the same time, as well as the sound of a sniper rifle firing a round and a body dropping dead on the ground.

 _"Yes! Got one! Told you I can get a kill in the Crucible!"_

 _"Keep it down, you peabrained idiot! You want us to get ourselves eliminated?!"_

 _"Oh, look at me! I'm a Warlock and I'm_ soo _smarter than a Titan or Hunter!"_

Excalibur picked up a conversation between two Guardians following the sniper shot. _Two guys, one's a Warlock. Partner could possibly be a Hunter given that a sniper was used._ Intrigued, he continued to listen in.

 _"At least I didn't have my balls hit by a pole during a Grudge Match!"_

 _"Says the one who got nearly decommissioned by a sample of a membrane from the new threat to the system!"_ countered the Hunter, followed by the sound of a handcannon loading and hammer cocked.

 _"Don't make me shoot you twice in the same place you got hit by a pole!"_

 _"Okay, okay!"_ the Hunter conceded.

 _"And keep your voice down! Unless you want Adam to find us!"_

Excalibur restored his audio receptors to its default state after having enough on the conversation, standing up from his crouch. _You can't be serious. These two?! Well, I guess it made my job a little easier._ He readied Tigris and rested the barrels on his shoulder, facing his female partner. "I think I have an idea of whom."

"Is it Silver and Rez?" asked Reaper, and her partner confirmed it. "What's the plan?"

"We get in as close as we can, try to challenge Rez to a one-on-one sniping match so I can deal with Silver."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

"I know how good you are at sniping with both your rifle and bow, so show that you're better than him."

"Let's do it."

* * *

 _'They're making their move sooner than I expected, my child. We're running out of time.'_

A spectral figure stood before the cocoon marked with the sigil of the Fourth Class, its approach of great urgency. The Light from within the cocoon still glowed hypnotically like a heartbeat, untouched from its formation.

From within the cocoon, the form raised its head to the shadow outside its cocoon. "But, my abilities and form aren't ready yet!" protested the form, their voice having matured from a young child's to one of a teenager's.

 _'I know. But your form has already matured enough. It'll be enough for joining the fight,'_ the spectral figure reassured the form in the cocoon with a maternal tone, hand brushing against the surface. _'You're faster than me or him. Use your speed to your advantage, because I know that is your greatest asset when you trained.'_

"...You're right. I am faster than you and everyone that trained me. I can overwhelm my enemies with my speed."

The spectral figure, despite in a dark abyss, shone just like the cocoon before it. It was revealed to be a female in the light it shone. In her hand was a scout rifle in a pouch holster, the frame looking extremely similar to Jade Rabbit.

 _'I'm going to free you from your cocoon now. And after you're ready to cross, I want you to start back home. Test yourself. I don't want you to jump straight into helping them and getting yourself killed.'_

After brushing her hand against the surface started whispering an incantation to the cocoon, the chant almost like a song. Cracks started to form all over the cocoon after she placed her hand on the cocoon, Light emerging from the cracks in a rapid stream and leaving the sigil untouched.

 _'Are you ready to help them, my child?'_

Within the cocoon, the body broke free from the fetal position and put a hand over their mother's on the other side of the cocoon. They saw their reflection from the Light surging through the cracks and knew that they had gotten older during their time in the cocoon.

"Yes. I'm ready to help them, mother. I won't let the Taken lay their hands on them."

* * *

 **AN- I swear this one just ate up too much of my time in the drawing board. It was hard to piece together certain scenarios and make them work in junction with the previous chapter, but I think I made it work in this chapter. Looks like Nero Bianco is up next to be eliminated from the Battle Royale on Reaper and Excalibur's list, and we may have a darker power setting in motion and forcing another power to step up and stop them.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-VI): Yep, looks like its gonna be one of those days for the rest of Blood Gulch to hear Sarge try to convince them that they've been 'teleported' to the future. As for the meditative conversation between Lightning and Trionus, I found it appropriate considering that the _kazoku_ is taking shelter in a shrine (May have also paid homage to Star Wars twice already: both with how Lightning used telekinesis to retrive her weapons package in II-V and Trionus having a ghostly form like Obi-Wan in II-VI). Also, the Darkness was difficult to use seeing as it was both manipulative and tempting to those that want to use it like the Guardians use their Light. That's why the Dark Knights see it as an ally; if they can't use it like the Guardians use the Light then it would be better to make a compromise to be able to use the power the Darkness offers.**

 **Guest (I-V): Well then, if Reaper can use a smoke grenade even though she's a Bladedancer, then how come Spectre can use the plate on his Pandion Type 0 as a shield even though its not a mechanic in the game. 'Splain dat. Nah, just kidding. Reaper used a smoke grenade that used the same mechanics as the smoke pellets used by Batman, so the smoke grenade is a tactical gear of sorts just like how Spectre can create decoys of himself and use a kinetic pull grenade.**

 **Zach rolstad (Guest, II-VI): Well, Sarge, Simmons, Caboose, Grif, Doc, and Washington didn't make an appearance from me directly. If you haven't read the summary (assuming you didn't), then The Crimson Commando and I have partnered with each other so that our stories can run at the same time. And with that allowed us to use characters (even guest characters from other franchises like Red vs Blue) from the other's story, so I practically brought Blood Gulch into mine thanks to him. And yes, it _is_ Red vs Blue. (Side note, not sure if you're the same Zach that nailed the Final Fantasy reference...)**

 **Supermario745 (Guest, I-V): Thanks! Support like that keeps me going (even if chapter writing takes too long than my average upload) and you just got me fired up! Also, I'm not sure whether you're referring to the character's faces or their weapons and armor that you would like reference to, so for the characters' armor and weapons I put them in the AN in chapters I-I, I-VI, and I-XI. I don't have a necessary reference for their faces (seeing as I sort of fiddled around with the character creator in the game) posted here yet, but I'll see what I can do to post it.**

 **As always, stay strong and keep yourselves safe from the Darkness, Guardians!**


	20. II-VIII: Battle of the Duos

_**Chapter VIII: Battle of the Duos**_

 _ **Absolution Arc**_

 **WARNING: HAS SOME MILD LANGUAGE, SOME GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF BLOOD AND VIOLENCE AND SUGGESTIVE THEMES USED IN A HUMOROUS CONTEXT. READ AT YOUR OWN LEISURE AND/OR RISK!**

* * *

 _00807 Hours, December 18, 2714_

The door leading to Spectre's medical bay room whooshed open and stepping in was 20/20. As soon as he stepped in, he saw the drapes surrounding the bed for privacy being used. The chairs that Lightning or Reaper used when they were visiting weren't next to his side unlike yesterday where Lightning was here crying for her brother's status since they found him on the Dreadnaught. Even the instruments hooked up to him remained untouched, eerily beeping like every time the grim reaper took a breath.

20 felt very sorry for him and everyone else affected by him, including his fellow Dark Knights, Fireteam members, and his friends. It was hard to see one of the Traveler's greatest Guardians be in a state like this, himself included. Primus wasn't hovering over the bedside table like he normally would. However, it was somewhat decorated with cards and messages hoping for him to get back on the battlefield soon, but the knife that he was often carrying in his Honor of Cormorant was there as well. _Odd. Did he leave to catch some space to think about the situation and how to get Spectre out of this mess?_ The deathly silence was sending chills down the Exo's spine and he swore that he shivered even though the temperature in the room was counteracting the winter weather outside.

Checking the holographic tablet in his possession and analyzing his vitals so far, his optics whirred disappointingly. They're weren't getting any better. It was as though he was trapped in limbo, being torn apart by living and being dead. This was the second case already, starting with the Fallen Warlock that had his Light drained by the Taken General.

"Spectre, I know you can't hear me, but…" the Exo approached the bed, holding the tablet under his arm, "We need you back. You're the best shot we got against Oryx and the Taken. If you're really the son of Trionus, then come back to us." He clenched the drapes and pulled them aside.

The chills he felt down his robotic spine had taken their toll on him and he knew that he wasn't making it up at all. It was as if someone turned off the temperature regulators in the room and opened the window leading to the balcony of the room. He stared at the pod that would've looked like a hospital bed endlessly, optics whirring and analyzing it. 20/20 started to slowly step away from the pod, dropping the portfolio/tablet-like device as he did. The drapes started to move on their own even though the windows were closed, and already did this look like a scene from a horror movie in 20's eyes.

"Oh no…"

* * *

 _Shibuya District, Old Tokyo_

 _Boom!_

Birds started fluttering away from both their perches and nests within range of the sound of a Häkke sniper rifle going off in the area. Their squawking and cawing were frantic, further complimented by how their wings were flapping madly. Within the branches was a Hunter clad in black armor and a red holographic-like cloak taken as a trophy from slaying one of the Psion Flayers on Mars. He crouched himself on a branch, a sniper rifle at the ready.

"That was your first warning shot!" yelled Rez, eyes through Stillpiercer's scope and perched on a tree.

"Oh please! You still suck anyway!" out of the heavy vegetation that his scope was pointed towards, an Arc-tipped arrow flew towards him. It landed mere inches from his head, impaling itself on the tree bark behind him. " _That's_ what you call a warning shot! Something that has you quaking in your boots like a coward!"

Rez wasn't lying on that. In fact, his legs started quivering violently and it started interfering with his aim. Sweat was pouring down from his forehead within his helmet and started to fog up his HUD and visor, forcing him to open some vents in his helmet and allow the air to remove it. _Damn, she knows how to intimidate someone when she's pissed off! That's kinda hot…!_ Gulping, he recomposed himself and steadied his aim but in his mind he was screaming.

"The next one's goin' right between your eyes, Reaper!"

"Try me, then!" Reaper decided to give Rez the slip and cloaked herself before jumping to another branch in another tree, preparing her Tamar-D and aiming at Rez's location. She grinned and quietly snickered at this, switching off her rifle's red laser and taking aim.

 _"SAYONARA, BIATCH!"_ Rez pulled the trigger on Stillpiercer and let the high caliber round within the chamber go, feeling the recoil in his arm. He hoped he had hit his mark this time like the Freelancer he eliminated earlier.

Instead, Reaper saw the sniper round burrow itself into the tree trunk that she was perched on before deciding to move and explode on contact. She tried to hold in her laughter at how gullible Rez was into thinking she was still perched there, but only small giggles rang out.

"AW, C'MON! WHAT THE FUCK?!" screamed the Nightstalker, just about to let his tantrum go into overdrive as he checked his scope. "I swear to the Traveler I think someone fucks with the sights when I'm not looking…"

Hoping the Nightstalker didn't hear her stifled laughter, she aimed her Tamar-D and thought of something funny.

"Oh, oh! Help me! I've been shot and I'm defenseless!" cried the Bladedancer, balancing her sniper rifle between her legs as she clutched her good arm convincingly. "Somebody, help me! Please! I don't want to be eliminated!" If there was anyone nearby, she crushed a fruit nearby and allowed it to drip down adding red coloring to make it look like blood.

 _ **[Are you sure that this is a good idea, Reaper? Won't Excalibur come running to your rescue?]**_

 _He knows about how I can trick people or be serious about it. He can tell._

Rex shrugged. _**[Your loss.]**_

Reaper then dropped her Tamar-D from her legs. She knew that she's taking a risk and expose her location but this was to both distract Rez while Excalibur was fighting Silver and eliminating said Nightstalker. Even if she had no sniper rifle, she still had her bow. _It's not gonna help out a lot. It'll take out only a quarter of his health. Guess I only have one thing left to use…_ She reached for the sidearm holstered on her hip and pulled it out. Reaper, mesmerized by its design and craftsmanship, unloaded the magazine and checked the rounds. They were definitely handcannon-caliber rounds, yet it was assigned as a sidearm. _Thanks for the weapon, Excalibur._

The cogs within her head started to turn, devising a plan to eliminate Rez without a sniper rifle. Quickly, she set her loaned sidearm on the branch and drew Night Predator out. Nocking in an arrow and aiming at Rez's perch from within her perch's dense vegetation, the arrow dimly glowed with Arc energy. Replacing the arrow tip was multiple devices carrying something.

"Please… Please don't kill me. I'm begging you," Reaper 'pleaded' in a sweet and almost seductive tone, dropping her opponent's guard almost instantly. She waited for the optimal flight conditions before letting the arrow fly, string pulled back. Her HUD zeroed in on Rez who already lowered his Stillpiercer's scope and removed the magazine.

"I thought that you had no reason to fight me other than challenging me to a one-on-one match. And I really don't want to hurt you."

"Oh, Rez," she purred with the seductiveness she could accumulate in the moment, her thoughts clearly laughing at the act she's putting up and a mental image of her hugging herself and fangirling like crazy compliment how gullible the Nightstalker was. "If only you weren't a total sap then I can see the two of us being together."

"Who says that we can't start now?"

"…Sucker."

Reaper let the arrow fly breaking the 'romantic' atmosphere between the two and shattering Rez's gullible nature into a million pieces. Her arrow burrowed itself into the tree trunk behind him and above his head, beeping rapidly.

"Son of a─!"

Too late. The devices had ceased their beeping and detonated. A cloud of smoke exploded behind him, fogging up Rez's visor and scrambling his HUD just like how Excalibur used his smoke bomb to eliminate Blood Gulch. He started feeling like suffocating from the smoke and covered his helmet's vents. That tactic failed and he started screaming in pain when a flash like Spectre's flashbang grenades exploded in his vision, blinding him and dropping his Stillpiercer. Even his movements were hindered by what felt like unstable Arc energy; moving even an inch would send an otherworldly dose of shocks into his body.

Quickly, Reaper picked up Excalibur's sidearm and leapt from tree branch to tree branch to get to the stunned Nightstalker. During her approach, she heard his screaming and cursing both himself for falling for her and her for her sweet-seductive act. That specialized arrow would only last for a few moments with its stun effects and normally wouldn't affect Guardians─if it weren't for the strange arsenal Excalibur had in his weapons drop canister.

* * *

" _Here, you might need this," said Excalibur, holding an almost alien yet human-built device before the Bladedancer. It looked completely throwable like throwing knives but had no visible blade on it. Instead it had hook-like appendages that would latch onto a surface or target and an explosive charge in the middle resembling a blade from a knife if placed flat on a surface. It wasn't entirely alien in design almost as if a Guardian would use these, but she never saw weapons like this._

 _"I think I can handle myself."_

 _"That's why I'm giving it to you," insisted the Gunslinger, putting the device in her hand. "I've seen your stun arrows in action and they don't affect Guardians to the point of giving you enough time to escape or attack them. These can help give that effect."_

 _"So do I attach them with my stun arrows or throw them individually?"_

 _"I'd recommend using them in junction with the stun arrows. These things pack quite the punch and honestly you don't want to be on the receiving end of these or within the radius."_

 _"I'll keep that in mind. And the sidearm?" she caught note of the sidearm in his other hand to which he handed it to her as well._

 _"Just a little something to give you since you'll need to draw a gun like a cowboy in a duel. From what I know about Rez, he's known for switching things off from a one-on-one sniper duel to a western-styled showdown and can draw it that fast, so use this to counteract his Last Word."_

 _"I can just as well use Starfall."_

 _"But can you draw your handcannon fast enough with that kind of heaviness?" Excalibur raised an eyebrow under his helmet. Reaper turned her head to the side and he knew the answer. "Exactly my point. So take it for now." He handed his partner the sidearm, to which the Bladedancer unloaded the magazine and checked the ammo. While she was checking the sidearm's weight and synchronization to her─which was surprisingly light for its frame and synced perfectly─, the Gunslinger leaned in close to her ear. "Oh, and once we meet up after we take down Silver and Rez, I'll be wanting my sidearm back."_

 _She yelped surprisingly and threw a hand at him to slap him. Excalibur dodged the hand and started laughing at her reaction. "You're terrible, you know that Excalibur?"_

 _"Like you said, I was never one to have an ego and be stubborn before. I might as well have started at some point," teased Excalibur. "By the way, how good are you at letting down your opponent's guard through acting?"_

 _"I've never tried it before. Why?"_

 _"I have an idea…"_

* * *

Reaper was just within range of the Nightstalker when the effects from both her stun arrow and attached bombs wore off. She caught a glimpse of Rez reaching for his Last Word and threw another of Excalibur's bombs at him. Unlike her throwing knives she was accustomed to when she was temporarily a Gunslinger herself, the bomb she threw wound itself in between Rez's legs and exploded. The Nightstalker screamed in a girly, inhumane way that it would be both amusing and grimacing-worthy to any spectator and covered up his junk affected by the explosion despite the shocks when he moved a muscle.

Now left vulnerable, Reaper tackled him from his perch in the tree mid-jump sending the two plummeting down into the snow-laden ground. They hit the ground back-first with a uncoordinated _thud!_ , Rez groaning painfully on impact. Attempting to get up, Rez used his arms to support his upper torso until he felt her weight on his lower torso pin him down to the ground. Reaper started pulling punches at his helmet with all the strength she could muster up after falling from a height, her opponent blocking his face with his arms. She started attacking the regions he left vulnerable from his blocking, still beating the living crap out of the Nightstalker's face.

"Wow! Right to the mount, huh? Not even gonna buy me dinner. Oh I like your style," commented the Nightstalker, to which Reaper caught sight of his holstered handcannon and took it out.

She waved The Last Word in his face teasingly much like how someone would wag their finger. "Not so much of a hot shot when you're without a gun, huh?" she teased before throwing it far away from them and into a nearby pond, then whipping out the sidearm from Excalibur and pointing it at him.

"Aw, c'mon Reap! I thought we had something in common!"

"Sorry, love," teased Reaper flirtatiously as she imitated Excalibur's English accent but expressed to match a London accent. "But I already swore my heart to someone else."

"Nonononononono!"

But it was too late. Reaper started repeatedly pulling the trigger and spraying the magazine right into Rez's face. What was once an Aspriet 1.0 quickly became a bullet-hammered and bloodied mess of its former self in the matter of an entire magazine. Only few of the bullets had broken through his helmet's protective visor and allowed the rest to burrow themselves into his face. She allowed him to scream in agony and whimper in pain after taking the bullet barrage to his face for as long as he can still make sounds from his throat before drawing Starfall out and pointing the barrel under his chin and right into his vocals. "Farewell, Rez." Rez croaked and shook his head but Reaper had already pulled the trigger. After putting a bullet in him, she got off him and walked away picking up her Tamar-D that she dropped. "Rez is taken care of, Excal. What about your end?"

 _"Yeah, about that part…"_

* * *

Excalibur threw one of his knives, a chain attached to the handle following the thrown projectile. The throwing knife missed. Deliberately. For the chain wrapped itself around one of the two remaining Freelancers' necks. Like he caught a fish, the Hunter took hold of the chain and reeled it back in, taking the choking Guardian along with it. The force of the pull further tightened the chain around their neck and eventually the chain broke their neck. As if it had a mind of its own, the chained knife released itself from the corpse's neck as the remaining Freelancer was knocked back by the body of one of their own. It retreated back into his waiting palm, vanishing into nothing like a magician reversing the phrase 'nothing up my sleeves'. The last Freelancer quickly got back up and fired their pulse rifle at the Gunslinger, to whom started dodging the fired bursts like a ninja before bringing out a sword resembling Spectre's Raze-Lighter. Without any other option the Freelancer put up their fists and charged towards Excalibur. The Titaness's punches were supercharged with Arc energy as she threw them at a lightning fast pace. Instead, she hit thin air instead of the Gunslinger irritating her further and continuing to throw punches at an inhuman pace.

Excalibur had enough of dodging towards her wild swings at him and blocked with his replicated Raze-Lighter at what could possibly be her last punch. The force from her Arc-infused punch sent Excalibur skidding against the floor of the ruined building, forcing him to impale his sword into the ground and slowing his skidding. Swiftly, he ripped the sword out of the ground and continued to dodge the Titaness's blows like the two were in a hypnotic yet deadly dance. "Funny thing about anger, Titania─"

Titania began her second flurry of swift punches and kicks, her opponent only blocking against about half of the assault as he held his blade by the side and stopped the onslaught of attacks. The Gunslinger noted that the female Striker was starting to get sloppy in her barrage, seeing that she was enraged by the fact that she could hardly land a serious blow on him after eliminating her own partner and one of Adam's friends that joined in on bullying Lightning and the _kazoku_.

"Let it consume you…"

Letting out a roar of rage Titania punched the flat of Excalibur's copied Raze-Lighter, swinging wildly at it to possibly destroy it and actually injure her opponent. Despite Titania being blinded by rage and frustration, Excalibur was able to keep up with the swings from her fists and successfully block all of her punches. His sword can take the punishment. Having enough, he counter-swung his replicated sword at the same time Titania made the final swing, causing her to stagger and backstep.

Cracking her knuckles and then her neck, the Titaness raced towards her opponent letting the tiles under her feet crumble into dust during her charge.

"Predictable…" muttered Excalibur, holding out Raze-Lighter again and pointed it towards his charging opponent, the blade eclipsing itself with the flames of Solar energy. However, as he channeled the flames the orange glow had become pitch black like burnt wood somehow and created an energy sheath for itself at his side. Once its manifestation was complete and the blade practically had the illusion of smoke erupting from the steel, Excalibur sheathed the blade and kept his hand at the ready. It was now that Titania noticed that the red linings around his armor start to glow like a wildfire burning bright. She didn't have the second thoughts into thinking it was a trap and by the time she realized it, it was too late.

"Checkmate."

"What─?!"

Before she could stop herself her fist was already in motion and on its way to striking Excalibur. Said Gunslinger waited for the right moment and quickly drew out the sword in the blink of an eye. Her eyes had perceived the Hunter standing before her but now he disappeared… Not.

He appeared several feet behind her, sword still in its slashing motion and pointed towards the altar. His opponent knelt on one knee, breathing heavily while her hand went to her side. Titania started breathing painfully and saw blood pouring out of her side and on her hand, followed by blood dripping out of her mouth from within her helmet. Excalibur looked over his shoulder and saw the blood from her wound start to pool underneath her, then back at his sword to which the cutting edge was dripping with her blood. Like it was an alien substance, he wrapped his gloved hand around the crossguard and traveled up the blade, wiping the blood off the blade as it went. As though some black magic was in effect, Titania watched as her outstretched fist fall from the rest of her arm and screamed, but the blood in her mouth forced her to gargle out such a horrific scream. She faced the Hunter behind her and started cursing him despite drowning in her own blood.

As though he heard her cries, Excalibur looked back hand at the very tip of his copied Raze-Lighter. "…And you lose sight of everything, even your own enemy." He finished as he turned his head away from Titania's gaze and sheathed the sword.

Nothing.

Titania felt nothing as her HUD started screaming in her face and the next thing she knew, her upper half of her body was separated from the lower half leaving her to bleed out. Using her arms, she crawled towards the Hunter snarling and struggling to stay alive long enough to kill him. "Da…mn…you…!" rasped Titania before taking one last breath and extending an arm towards him until she was declared eliminated from the match. Her Ghost hovered over her upper half, indicating that she will at least be revivable with both the best medical supplies on the dropship and not killed during the Royale.

 _Another one down. At least that's the last of Adam's pals in this Battle Royale._ Again, Excalibur felt some form of content and accomplishment after eliminating both Titania and her partner. However, he knew it wasn't over. He sensed it.

As if to prove it, Excalibur felt the barrel of either a scout rifle or a sidearm pressed against the back of his head. His hands reached for his holstered pistols in his thigh holsters and wrapped around the pistol grips. He knew who else would be left here.

"You have no idea what you're up against."

"And neither do you, Exo." Excalibur pulled away in time before his attacker had a bullet put in his skull and drew out one of his sidearms. Both opposing forces pulled the triggers on their guns, both the sidearm ammunition calibers exploding from their respective guns. Somehow, despite the Hunter's gun shooting only one bullet based on barrel design the larger caliber made a head-on collision with two nine millimeters. The bullets from both sides hit one another like the tips were magnets, flattening the heads when they impacted with one after the other.

 _No way! He's shooting my bullets out of the air! Just who is this guy?!_ Silver thought, knowing that it was physically impossible for such a feat like this!

Eventually, both the caliber nine millimeter and .50 AE handguns ran dry the slides cocking back. Silver and Excalibur retracted their guns close to their faces, hitting the magazine releases. The empty magazines dropped to the ground, revealing that neither one had any bullets left. Flicking his wrist, Silver's sleeve produced a spare magazine full of specially designed high caliber ammunition.

With the clip hitting home, Silver hit the slide release on his customized Jabberhäkke-D, the main chamber covering the exposed internal parts and chambering a round. The other barrel, despite having no way to chamber the next one, slid closed just like the other. Once he looked up, Excalibur had not only one gun in his possession but two. The newly pulled pistol was identical to the black one in design─and possibly the caliber─, but was silver-gray and designed for the left hand. And somewhat even worse, the gun that was empty was reloaded already. The Hunter had laser pointers attached to the underbarrels of his weapon and two beams of red light aimed at him. One at the chest, the other at his head.

"Well, that's hardly fair." Silver ran for cover as the Gunslinger began to pull the triggers on his nine millimeter pistols. The bullets rapidly raced over towards the Exo, the rate of fired shots almost like an assault rifle or SMG. He dived towards the floor, sliding on it as he found cover behind a church-like pew. Keeping his head down, Silver waited for the target's pistols to run out of ammo as the flake-like fragments of wood caked over him.

Excalibur kept on shooting at the pew the temporary leader of Nero Bianco was hiding behind, the ancient wood chipping away by the blast and striding towards it as he fired away. Both his guns overheated from the inconsistent volley of its own high caliber rounds. At the same time, Silver saw the opening and got up, blasting away a volley of magnum-like bullets. Quickly reacting, the Hunter caught the sound of the Jabberhäkke-D's hammers striking the chambered bullets and backflipped as he dodged them.

The Warlock rushed towards the Hunter, Jabberhäkke aimed point blank in his face after he finished evading the bullets. "You got a jacked up notation of fair play, pal. And it's seriously beginning to piss me off!"

"Rule one: never let your guard down!" the Hunter knocked the point blank sidearm out of his face with the barrel of his silver-gray handgun─Hikari─and aimed Yami the same way he was a few seconds ago. Eventually the both of them were knocking each other's guns with their own, the clashing metals sparking against one another. During the exchange of pistol slides sparking against the other, one of the two had pulled the trigger the other moving his head away and pushing the gun away with their own simultaneously. The exchange alternated for a while until they backstepped from one another, the slides a flame red-orange after striking the other with such force.

Hikari and Yami were withdrawn and the Gunslinger drew out his replicated Raze-Lighter once more, the edge of the blade breaking through the floor. A sound like the activation of a device followed the handle being cranked, the blade shifting from the dim silver to a flame orange.

"Guess this doesn't cut it…" Silver holstered his sidearm, seeing that a sword was the one weapon he was glad he brought to this Crucible match! Silver summoned his Bolt-Caster and threw it up. The blade spun in the air and the second-in-command caught it on its descent, embedding it in the ground and twisted the handle. A similar start-up followed the action, the infusing itself with Arc energy.

"Now we're talking! Come on then Silver!" provoked Excalibur.

They charged towards each other, the tips of the swords skidding across the floor as showers of sparks of Arc and Solar fused metals left a trail. Tendrils of the layer of energy flashed across the blades of both swords like lightning bolts as they were ready to show their wrath to the other.

Rather than attacking head-on Silver brought up his sword and held it sideways. The Gunslinger went on the offensive, just as he had predicted as the copied sword was brought down on the horizontal blade. With a moment to counterattack, he threw his foot into Excalibur, sending him back a few feet. _Might not be an expert combatant on swords, but at least I can compensate…_

Quickly reacting, the Hunter threw his blade up to block the attack. Again, Silver saw this coming and parried the block, stepping to the side and behind the defending swordsman. But Excalibur was no idiot. In fact, he turned around as Silver went behind him, the blunt edge beating the Warlock's single edge to the punch. Once the Exo was hit in his side, he reversed his grip on the sword and swung the blunt edge in the Hunter's side.

Unfortunately, Excalibur didn't feel the pain from the blow despite him without any forms of armor to counteract a blow like that. He wrenched Raze-Lighter's handle, the golden-orange slowly darkening into a hellish red. _Let's see if he can keep up!_

 _Great!_ Dodging a barrage of intense Solar-fused slashes and feeling the breath of the sword's heat nearly injuring him, he got enough distance for a moment's pause. Like his opponent, he turned his weapon's handle not once but twice the second rev longer than the first. The sky blue Arc layer was joined by its stronger, thunder-like counterpart and further intensifying the Arc energy.

Both of them charged towards each other once more, the element-sheeted blades at the ready. When they were mere feet from each other, they raised their weapons ready for the offense. The killing edges of both swords clashed with each other, the flame and thunder-fused blades sparking small tendrils of energy as the natural sparks danced. Excalbur and Silver were at a standstill, their exerted strength matching the other's as they fought to win the standstill.

"Impressive, you managed to keep up."

"Like that's any feat for someone like me!" Silver growled, ignoring the sparks and tendrils that almost hit him in his face. His breathing became labored from all the fighting and dodging, body ready to give up. But he survived worse than this. He continued to put all his strength in his weapon, determined to win this duel and lose some heat from his back from the Battle Royale.

Excalibur smirked under his helmet, seeing the determination the Exo was showing. _Too typical. Looks like he didn't keep in mind the one thing he lacks in combat!_ He smashed his head towards his enemy's own. Taken aback from the sudden move, Silver faltered in his struggle to win the standstill. Again, he kicked the Stormcaller in the stomach. As he doubled over, Excalibur swung Raze-Lighter disarming Silver of his sword.

Despite his efforts to reobtain it, Silver was thrown into a row of the pews from the stage. The wooden furniture smashed on impact, burying him in it. At the same time, the sword found its way impaled through the floor once again, the Arc energy short-circuiting and flickering down to nothing. As for the Gunslinger, he didn't bother coming towards the wooden rubble. In fact he was checking to see if Silver still had some fight left in him or not. _Tch, how pathetic. No wonder we've grown so soft in endurance…_

As if on cue, the rubble moved and out crawled the Stormcaller. He limped, his unarmored areas burning with pain from a launch like that. Amused, Excalibur walked towards where Silver's sword rested and stabbed Raze-Lighter into the flesh of the floor next to it. He wrenched out Bolt-Caster from the floor. Bringing it up to his face as if to observe it, he gripped the blade and the handle with both hands.

"C'mon, get up! Is this the Silver-79 we all know?! Or is it the fact that he can't get up from after such a beating?!" he taunted, pointing the Bolt-Caster at Silver.

 _Dammit!_ Silver cursed, seeing his only other weapon aside from his Jabberhäkke was now in his possession. Excalibur picked up his custom sword and rested the blunt side on his shoulder as he walked towards him once again. Taking his chance, he turned around rushed towards the kneeling Warlock, sword ready to kill him.

 _Say good-bye!_

Silver snapped out of his daze, unthinkingly rolling out of the way and evading the swing in its entirety. Even if he was thinking, he channeled his Force Push and struck Excalibur with it sending the Hunter into the concrete wall.

Before the Gunslinger hit the wall, he planted his boots on it and jumped off once he hit it. "There's no way…!" but he was cut off by a surprise right hook. He flew towards another wall, unable to process that the silver-white and red colored Stormcaller somehow rushed up to him in the time he flew and hit him. This time, he crashed into the wall and left a crater of his impact. Raze-Lighter flew in the air spinning from its owner's reach, impaling itself atop one of the pillars in the room far from anyone's reach.

"Hate to interrupt this, but I'd rather wrap this up before the competition arrives!" stated Silver, dusting his hands and controlling the flow of energy in his Force Push.

Recovering from the impact, the Hunter got off the cratered wall and brought out the chained kunai again. He let the chain drop, the knife falling to the floor. Spinning the chain, the weapon began to revolve again, the hypnotizing skill and grace returning as he threw the bladed edge of the knife and chain weapon towards the military official.

This time, Silver expected the attack as he stepped to the side, grabbing the length of the chain as the razored edge flew past him. Using his arm on cooling down from channeling the energy, he wrapped the chain around it and pulled. The resulting force reeled in the kunai and chain's owner towards the supposed target. As the Hunter was pulled in, the Stormcaller released the chain around his arm. He caught Excalibur by the neck and slammed him to the ground, an angry flurry of punches striking Excalibur's face.

But Silver knew better than to just kill the Gunslinger here and now. He seized his thrown punches and picked the unconscious Excaliber up by his cloak's clasps. "I don't know who the Hell you are, but I can guarantee that you'll be eliminated from this match." His hand reached for the helmet of the assassin, ready to unveil who he is.

The Hunter immediately awoke from being knocked out, throwing a left hook at the Warlock. His enemy was sent flying back as he got back up to his feet, arm twitching as if it was ready to punch people all the way to hell. As Silver was soaring back towards the stage, Excaliber ran up the pillar where Raze-Lighter was impaled. Once he got to the top he firmly planted his feet on the pillar and the ledge, yanking it out in one go.

Rolling on the stage on impact, Silver still found the strength to fight as he slowly got up. The burning pain washed over him being launched here from the middle of the room. A glimpse of silver caught the corner of his eye. He found out that the one thing he long to obtain to survive this fight was within his grasp. Hand rushing towards the handle, he grabbed it, now rearmed with Bolt-Caster. Again, he wrenched the handle on the sword, hoping the energy blade tech still worked on this one. The tech barely ignited, but it still worked.

"Still alive, I see," taunted the Hunter, standing from the ledge of the pillar with Raze-Lighter resting on his shoulder. "Must be all that determination to stay alive."

"Tough guy, huh?" Silver answered, propping his sword on his shoulder as he faced away from the Gunslinger in black. "Well…" He quickly drew out his Jabberhäkke and fired a volley of bullets.

Excaliber leapt off the pillar he stood from, the high caliber rounds missing and destroying the pillar instead. He brought his blade downward, perfectly in sync that he'll land a hit. It wasn't the case as his opponent deflected the attack with his own weapons. While it didn't fully block it, the barrels of the sidearm were cut clean from the rest of the weapon rendering it useless.

Tossing his destroyed custom sidearm to the side, the Warlock kept his hands on his sword. Both of them were parrying the other's moves in an endless loop trying to injure the other and maybe even end this fight. A fight that seemed to last forever.

 _He's wounded, he has to be. But I'll admit, he has a lot of endurance for a Hunter…_

Were it not for him thinking a lot, he would've dodged a kick to the abdomen, which sent him back-first on the ground. He was also disarmed of his sword once he hit the ground, to which they were out of his reach. A surge of pain coursed through his body, preventing him from moving temporarily.

The sound of Excalibur's sword charging and activated a setting reached his ears and he redirected his attention. Excalibur stood before him, foot on an arm and Raze-Lighter in his possession, Solar-charged blade mere inches from his throat. The heat of the Solar energy burned at Silver's throat as he was defenseless against the Hunter. His training for this Crucible match, all of it from the matches he actually participated in, was useless against this apparent seasoned swordfighter.

"What are you doing?" questioned the Exo bitterly, glaring daggers at the Gunslinger. "Go on! Eliminate me!"

Excalibur's hand started to quiver shifted from trembling in doubt to keeping his grip, sure of what he will do. Even the searing heat from Raze-Lighter started to falter in its flame. Reluctant, he raised the replica Raze-Lighter and felt the blade's flames close to his helmet.

After pondering for what seemed to be forever, the Gunslinger made his choice.

… _Forgive me, buddy._

And after having a moment of silence to regret this, he brought his sword down on his opponent.

 _"Silver-79 has been eliminated by Combatant 30. Fireteam Nero Bianco has been eliminated from the Battle Royale. Now, only the main teams of Valhalla, Sparta and the Dark Knights remain."_ Shaxx announced through the comms channel, eliminating the rest of the Freelancers and Nero Bianco from the roster.

Excalibur dropped his sword after the Exo disappeared into the drop ship to join with the others eliminated, staring at his sword-wielding hand and flexing it. _What have I done? I didn't have to do it, but whose idea was it to eliminate him and Rez? Me. But I must press on._ He closed his hand into a fist, forcing a Solar flare to ignite from within his fist. _Besides, the bigger prey needs to bleed so that his rivals ─the ones that he's been picking on since the secret was revealed─can finish him off. Besides…_

He looked towards one of the holes left in the building that directly pointed towards the sky and the faint outline of the moon in its wake. A breeze picked up in the ruins, rejuvenating yet filled with woes for the Hunter. A hand reached for the grip of the holstered Last Word and wrapped itself around the grip before he whipped it out and aimed at nothing like a western showdown.

… _It'll be high noon soon._

* * *

 **A/N: Y'know, I actually planned this to be a** _ **tiny**_ **bit longer than I planned by adding an extra scene but I decided 'dude, it's like 2:15 in the morning, you need your sleep, and settle with finding the time to add the scene here or in another chapter'. So yeah. I'll find the time to add the extra and for now, just enjoy this rather 'curling-up-into-a-ball' worthy of a chapter (in terms of maybe going a little overboard with the violence and themes).**

 **Prophet: Seriously?**

 **Me: *sniffing* Prophet, you smell that?**

 **Prophet: I can't smell anything, remember?**

 **Me: I smell some form of history between Excalibur and Silver, as well as another person with a grudge against Adam the Taurus.**

 **Prophet: Seriously? You just compared Adam to a bull?**

 **Me: RWBY reference. That and his behavior is highly reminiscent to anyone born with the astral sign of Taurus.**

 **Prophet: Based on what you've read about Adam in** _ **Dragons' Destiny**_ **. Assumptions right there.**

 **Me: I'll try to ask The Crimson Commando─oh wait. It's confirmed. Ha!**

 **Prophet: I'm just gonna stop here on our 'argument'. If you'll excuse me, I'm going back to rest mode. *leaves***

 **Zach (Guest, II-VII): Glad you cleared that up with you and your brother and love the chapter! I know it may deviate from the** _ **Destiny**_ **universe and into** _ **Warframe**_ **territory from time to time but I actually like these two games and wanted to blend in elements from both games to see what concoction I've made (lame chemistry joke here somewhere along the borderlines of 'concoction'…)!**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-VII): Yes, we did get some backstory on the** _ **kazoku**_ **indeed but also of how the generation of Dark Knights Lightning and the other Dark Knights may have lived their lives. Oh trust me, it doesn't have to be** _ **one**_ **secret weapon Excalibur has up his sleeve. *imitates Richtofen* It could be two! Or three! *end of imitation* And yes, maybe the Tenno are making a comeback, but who knows for now? Could be from either the half Tenno half Dark Knight heritage both Spectre and Lightning share or the mysterious Heir…**

 **As always, I'll see you Guardians around! Stay safe out there!**


	21. II-IX: Fallen

_**Chapter IX: Fallen**_

 _ **Absolution Arc**_

* * *

 _1419 Hours, December 18, 2714_

 _Shibuya District, Old Tokyo_

 _Shit! Just when you think having to deal with this was bad enough!_ Leon dived over cover nearby and huddled against it, Lionheart at the ready as well as his supply of Spira throwing daggers. Three of his daggers rested between his knuckles in his free hand and customized sword's cylinder overheated, steam erupting from it in a fury. Even with the throwing daggers in his hand, the Dark Knight hit the cylinder release on his gunblade. It swung out on its own, the steam in more of a furious storm than before and ejecting the casings of the handcannon-caliber rounds. Fumbling around to get his speed reloader from his pouch and dodging the bullet storm directed at him was already difficult enough but being pinned down by a strategically-coordinated team was hell. _What next, throwing all of their grenades at me?!_

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw multiple spheres flying towards his point of cover and cursed himself for mentally saying that out loud. He dove out of the way and behind a wall, speed reloader slamming into the cylinder and loading the chamber before swinging the gunblade to the side and slamming the cylinder in place. _Dammit, where is she?!_ He wanted to call out to Aqua for support here but this was beyond a typical ambush. _Guess they weren't kidding when Valhalla was one of the strategic Fireteams! Pinning down one of us with the entire team is just overkill!_ After the barrage of grenades intended for him had snuffed out their last sparks of life Leon kept both his fist lined with throwing daggers and gunblade at the ready, his helmet's sensors diverted a majority of its function to listen in on Valhalla's chatter.

 _"Did we get him?"_

 _"That amount of grenades? Doubt that it worked at all."_

 _"Don't know much about the Dark Knights but they're rumored to have ninja-like reflexes. Guess they kept something from their Tenno brethren."_

 _"Might as well be better than Hunters."_

 _"I don't know Carolina but something about this one seems to be saying 'I'm better than the others' to us."_

 _They got that right._ Leon slung Lionheart across his back and two blades popped out from underneath his wrists, sparking with ash gray energy. Scaling up the wall with the help of his hidden blades, Leon sloppily vaulted over the edge to get onto the roof as though he was in pain. He almost slipped and fell off the edge but managed to hang on with his hidden blades. After regaining balance, Leon deployed a scanner drone to find the rest of his teammates after they separated. _C'mon, where are you guys?_ His hidden blades retracted back and he slumped over against the wall, breathing heavily and dropping his Spiras next to him. _I don't know if any of my shots hit any of them but given the massive shields resistance I doubt it caused significant damage._ He lifted a hand from his shoulder and picked up his daggers only to drop them again. _Dammit… They got me good in the arm. No doubt about it._ Right now, Leon felt as though some rabid animal chomped its fangs onto his arm and turned into a hanging sack of meat once it was done.

 _"Leon!"_

"Aqua, where are you?!" hissed Leon, the pain steadily growing from his wounds.

 _"I don't know, the drone I sent out hasn't picked up any of us except for us on the comms! Cloud and I are safe but Light went off somewhere! I tried contacting her but she's not responding!"_

"Aqua, I'm on the rooftops within the area where Valhalla tried to kill me with their grenades. I won't lie but they're damn good as a team!"

 _"Hold on, Cloud and I are nearby. Just stay there!"_

Leon scoffed amusingly. "Why would I ever move out when they're still out there?" he turned off the comms channel and glanced out into the sky where his drone was still scanning for the rest of his team. He got back to his feet but collapsed against the wall from the pain. Glancing at one of the corners of his HUD, his health wasn't in good fighting condition as the gauge was already in the red zone. Shaking his head, he took another look at Lionheart and spun the heavy cylinder with his thumb and replacing the current round with the next round.

 _Heh, I may bleed out and be eliminated or might be saved in the nick of time… Might as well lay low for now._ The drone he sent out to scan for the rest of his team's location returned to him and perched on his shoulder like an eagle. "Nothing, huh?" he murmured, slipping in and out of consciousness. The world around him became clouded in a haze, a clear blue sky now a mess of blue and the vegetation growing wild than its current condition. Even the chatter he picked up from Valhalla was becoming a cacophony of voices. "Can't say… I blame you…"

It continued to worsen for him as the built-in vitals monitor was blaring in his HUD and dropping steadily. _C'mon Aqua, hurry up…_ Even if he had done what he could to stop the blood, it somehow reopened and continued to bleed. Memories of the missions he had undergone in the worst conditions resurfaced and Leon recalled a number of those missions with a similar situation of wounds of this scale. After all, his armor compared to the other Dark Knights and the _kazoku_ was visibly weaker to provide himself with more mobility. He tightened the makeshift bandages from the remnants of his sleeve as hard as possible, grunting painfully in spite of slipping in and out of consciousness.

That was until two shadowy figures appeared before him and based on their appearances in his blurring vision they were Hunters. Weakly, he raised Lionheart at them with his finger on the trigger despite his arm shakily holding it with the little strength he had in his arm. If Valhalla had already found him, then he was going down with one of them. Instead, he dropped his gunblade immediately after struggling to hold it for so long. One of the two knelt next to him and started saying something to their partner before pulling out a medical kit from their pouches. _Why are they helping me? I'm their enemy, not an ally!_ In the growing numbness from the blood loss he faintly felt the makeshift bandage he made being removed and cleaned up the blood before applying an actual gauze bandage.

The Hunter that was standing up and facing him knelt next to him as the other stood up and repacked the kit. "Stay here… They'll be… soon."

"Who…are you…?" questioned Leon before succumbing to his nearly fatal blood loss and falling unconscious.

 _ **-Destiny: Skyfall-**_

 _Leon, where are you?!_

Just as things were going smoothly for Aqua and Cloud, it all came crumbling down just as they were within Leon's location. As he had warned, Valhalla was still here patrolling the area until they found them. Aqua already casted a shield spell to reflect as much bullets as it can take but her lack of a firearm and beliefs of being a pacifist unless using her magic to kill is necessary really made her weaknesses. Cloud had both of his Buster and Fusion swords at the ready and defending himself from the bullets using the flats of the swords as shields. As Cloud blocked the bullets, the swordsman and healer-sorceress hid in an alleyway and being the brawn of the _kazoku_ he took first and took cover near the end. The gunfire aimed at the two scattered near the corner and Cloud moved his head away from the corner in the case that any strays hit him.

"Hey, why don't you come out of hiding and face us!?"

"You guys have to pay for eliminating Blood Gulch!" called out Leonard Church, aiming his sniper rifle at the hiding place where Cloud and Aqua are hiding.

"What are you talking about? We didn't take them out!" responded Aqua.

"Then how do you explain the combatant killing them using a weapon not known in the Guardian armory database?!" Church countered irritably, finger on the trigger just itching to fire a shot in their direction. "Plus, how the hell can a special weapon cause a massive explosion as big as a rocket launcher round with cluster bomb and wipe the team out!? Something tells me that another one of you is among us!"

"Listen, I don't know what you're talking about but I can reassure you that there are only five of us, and you know that Spectre is still in a coma! The rest of us are here in this match and didn't find Blood Gulch last night!"

The Exo Titan of Valhalla started speaking in Spanish, to which the rest of Valhalla and the Dark Knights had no clue what he's saying. That was until Colton translated it for them. "Can't believe I'm saying this, but Lopez said 'Still doesn't make a difference! It has to be Dark Knight weaponry and you're the only ones who have such weapons!'!"

Aqua glanced over at Cloud, the two of them sharing puzzled looks. "A weapon that can cause an entire six-man team to be wiped out in a single payload?"

 _"Sore ha, Angstrum nari mase n. Watashiha, sore ha sonshou no you na mono wo okonau koto ga deki masu shitte iru yuiitsu no buki desu._ It has to be an Angstrum. It's the only weapon I know that can do that kind of damage."

"That handheld rocket launcher?!" gasped Aqua and Cloud slowly nodded in agreement. "Combine a professionally modified Angstrum with a Gjallarhorn while a rocket is live and in the chamber…!"

 _"Bingo."_

"But who would bring that here? No other Guardian I know has it and last I checked, our relationships with the Guardians in the last twenty years weren't on friendly terms! In fact, we've _never_ had any relationships with Guardians who stumbled onto our territory as a whole!"

 _"Nai kagiri, betsu no Kurai Kishi ha watashitachi no ma desu._ Unless there is another Dark Knight among us." Cloud added, dodging another fired bullet from either Colton or Lopez.

"Well?! C'mon out and fight!" yelled Church. Cloud looked at his female partner and the two silently thought about it.

Taking a deep breath, Aqua moved over in front of Cloud. "Let us find Leon and we'll fight you fair!"

"As if! We're not letting you get that chance after the trouble he caused!" Valhalla opened fire again at the corner. Cloud pulled Aqua away from the corner he previously occupied, becoming her shield once more.

Aqua had her own set of throwing bombs at the ready, all of which were sparking with electricity and huddled against the wall. "Cloud, what now?!"

 _"Varuhara no ki wo sorasu desho u. Anata ha Reon wo mitsuke, karewo shuuseiwo eru iki masu._ I'll distract Valhalla. You go find Leon and get him fixed up," said Cloud, readying his swords and dual-wielding them.

"Are you out of your mind?! They have a Dragon's Breath rocket with our names on it and you're going to charge in with just your swords to stop it!?"

 _"Watashiha bachiwo toru koto ga deki masu. Makase te._ I can take the punishment. Trust me. _"_ Cloud's armor morphed in front of her according to one of his subclass's abilities. During its transformation, Cloud's armor started to increase in durability as layer-like armor plates overlapped the previous one until he practically looked like a human tank. _"Akua, Reon wo tori ni iku maeni watashiha buusuto wo hitsuyouto suru tsumori desu._ Aqua, before you get Leon I'm gonna need a boost."

She nodded. "Right."

Without the use of her journal containing her magecraft, Aqua started praying in an ancient language. An aqua blue light enveloped the two Dark Knights' armors followed by a leaf green light. Cloud breathed in as the spells reinvigorated him both strength and health before exhaling. Both of them looked at each other and nodded, ready to execute another tag-team maneuver before charging out of cover. Valhalla immediately saw the two running out of the alleyway and into the snow-laiden vegetated streets and readied their weapons.

"Get them!"

Valhalla returned fire at the swordsman mainly only to see that the bullets they had fired at him were completely ineffective as they only burrowed themselves into the multi-layered armor. And according to their HUDs, his overshields barely even took damage at all! Some of the bullets strayed from their target and charged towards the healer-sorceress but were stopped completely when Cloud stretched out his arm and used the Buster Sword as a shield for her. While the Buster Sword was covering her, Aqua threw her bombs at the Fireteam attacking them out of their field of vision but enough to lay a trap.

"Donut, what're you waiting for? Fire!"

"Fire in the hole!" he pulled the trigger on Dragon's Breath.

The rocket charged out of its chamber and into the direction of Cloud and Aqua. Quickly, Cloud put his swords together into a makeshift shield of sorts and braced for the explosion and surrounding fire. But the rate of which the rocket was closing the distance between them was starting to shorten quickly. Aqua already made her way to the alleyway and dodged the fire directed at her.

 _Even if he does that, he'll take heavy damage! It'll be enough for his Iron Armor ability to completely be decimated!_ An aura of green light encompassed around the healer-sorceress of the _kazoku_ , followed by her best hand glowing in the same light and a seal appearing beneath her feet. "Aero!" A ball of wind sped from her casting hand, blowing away some of the snow as it headed in the direction of the rocket.

The sphere of wind struck the rocket mid-flight, whistling like a hurricane had struck the area and diverted it from course effectively. It missed Cloud by a few feet and struck the side of a building, the napalm released from the rocket bursting to life and setting both the wall and snow aflame. Cloud broke his 'shield' and planted the swords into the ground before starting to channel his inner power. Like Aqua's Aero spell, Cloud became surrounded in navy blue energy and encasing his Buster and Fusion swords as well.

"What's he doing?!"

"Stop him!" Again, Valhalla returned fire on the tank of the _kazoku_. What they didn't expect was that this time was a barrier was in front of him, deflecting the rounds like rubber balls bouncing off a wall. Unstable electricity started to form at his fingers like a Stormcaller until he gripped the hilts of the heavy swords and put the Fusion Swords away, leaving him with the Buster Sword. He felt the power grow to pass beyond his limit and cut the channeling of his power, yanking the Buster Sword out and preparing for battle.

 _"Genkai wo kaeru!_ I'm breaking my limits!" he charged towards Valhalla, sword grinding against the ground. Even if the onslaught of bullets hammered against his reinforced armor, he kept on going. Once the distance between the Fireteam and Cloud was closing at an alarming rate, Donut already loaded another rocket into Dragon's Breath and aimed at the Dark Knight. _I don't want to do this, but I have to!_ Cloud grit his teeth knowing it was too late to stop the inevitable. " _Akua, ima!_ Aqua, now!"

Aqua heard his order and despite being in cover and out of visual range with her bombs, snapped her fingers. The bombs hidden from Valhalla's sight detonated without warning, the streams of electricity combining as one. It first ensnared Donut in its electric web, followed by the bolts jumping to the rest of his team and giving them the electric shock of their life. Some of the team yelled from the unbearable shocks and even in this state, Donut kept a lock on Cloud.

However, Donut was too late to pull the trigger as Cloud leapt and punched the ground like a Striker. A tsunami of electricity swept Valhalla off their feet, the ground shattering in the process and suspending the team from the ground like falling in place. Quickly, Cloud propelled himself into the air and summoned the rest of his Limit Break channeling it to the Buster Sword and swinging. A beam of power shot out from the sword and bombed towards Valhalla. As the blade beam was mere feet away from the group it deconstructed itself into five mini versions of itself. The five beams struck their individual targets dealing a nasty amount of pain to them all.

But this triumph didn't last as long as Cloud thought.

" _N-nani?!_ W-what?!" at the corner of his HUD, he saw blood flying and a trail leading straight into his chest. Some force hit him in the chest like someone shoving him around. According to his HUD, the remainder of his Iron Armor had disappeared in an instant and in one bullet. _How did─?!_

His gaze followed the trail left behind and traced it back to a rooftop. A purple and green-trim Warlock with a 1000-Yard Stare in her hands. _Sparta!_ As if she read his thoughts, South rested the sniper's barrel against her shoulder and smugly saluted at him before bursting into a sadistic type of laughter. Cloud growled to the best of his ability at the Warlock of Fireteam Sparta for her cowardice even though he was rapidly descending onto the ground. Blood escaped his lips and he heard his heart pounding against his ears from the shot, but it ended all too quickly.

After what seemed to be an eternity, Cloud came crashing down on his back and leaving one hell of a crater on impact.

"Cloud!" gasped Aqua and ran towards the crater where her _kazoku_ member was embedded from a fall like that. _I'm sorry Leon, just hold on a little longer!_ Even though Leon should be her main priority to look after, Cloud's shot from South was more immediate to look over right now! She slid next to Cloud's body and with the strength her frail frame could muster up, she pulled him out of the crater in the ground. She rested his head against her lap immediately after pulling him out. "C'mon Cloud, stay with me!"

It wasn't good. The shot from that sniper found its way to his right lung and it wasn't getting any better. Aqua removed his helmet to let him breathe and started on administering first aid to him. _C'mon spells, don't fail on me now!_ The green glow she used to cast Aero reappeared in her casting hand and over Cloud's wound, clearing up the blood and extracting the round from within the lung. Cloud grunted painfully from the bullet being extracted from his lung, and each tiny movement the bullet made wasn't helping him at all. Instead of being painless, it felt more like his lungs being decompressed and torn apart by meat hooks!

 _"Good luck with that wound there, Cloud."_ South faced the other direction and started walking away from the scene. _"Once that round hits bone, let's just say your little medic is gonna get blood on her face and hands."_

" _Akua, sore wo hikidashi te i nai!_ Aqua, don't pull it out!"

"Cloud, I have to or we're gonna lose our muscle in this team!"

Cloud grabbed part of her armor and pulled her face close. _"Honeni fureru sore wo kika se te iru baai bakuhatsusuru yo!_ It'll explode if you let it touch bone!" he growled.

"What am I supposed to do!?" countered Aqua, withdrawing her hand from his wound and covering her helmeted face with her gauntlets. "If I don't, Light's not gonna be happy when she finds out you were taken out of the Battle Royale by a bullet to the lung and refusing to have it removed!"

" _Sukunakutomo watashiha naze watashiha watashino hai kara sakujo sa re ta dangan wo motte iru kyohi shit e i masu yoi riyuu ga aru!_ At least I have a good reason why I'm refusing to have a bullet removed from my lung!"

Aqua looked down at her casting hand and frowned under the veil of the helmet, the faint aura of the magic she could harness giving warmth in her palm. The odds were stacked against her thanks to what Valhalla and now South had done to the ninja and brawn of the team. In her lap was one of the more valued members of the _kazoku_. One wrong move on removing the bullet and he's gone from the match; she could be held responsible for his elimination and not South; she could be possibly leaving her boyfriend for dead because of this turn of events; she could─

Her thoughts and panic came to a freezing halt upon the cocking of many rifles' bolts chambering rounds, and she lowered her head. Aqua dared not to look back and beg to heal Cloud. Tears welled up in her azure eyes, blurring her vision badly by making her HUD a complete mess of its former look. _It's over. I'm gonna be gunned down by them and leave only Lightning to finish the fight… I'm sorry…_

And then they fell.

* * *

 **A/N: I DEEPLY APOLOGIZE FOR MY LACK OF ANY UPDATE PROGRESS! *On knees begging for forgiveness* THE DAYS FOLLOWING MY LAST UPDATE WERE RIDDLED WITH STUDYING THAT I DIDN'T HAVE ANYTIME TO CONTINUE IT! NOR DID MY SUMMER VACATION! THIS IS WHAT I GET AFTER SIGNING UP FOR AN AP CLASS AND ASSIGNED HOMEWORK OVER THE COURSE OF THE BREAK!**

 **Prophet: *Sweatdrops* Link, you're making yourself look like a fool. I think they get the idea from the duration of the time between June and now.**

 **Me: How about you put yourself in my shoes?!**

 **Prophet: I don't have to ─ Since** _ **I**_ **helped you out on parts of it.**

 **Me: You and your silver tongue…**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XX)─ We all know how that went when Rez 'flirted' with Vura: on a sour note that it couldn't make songs! As for the** _ **kazoku**_ **teaming up with Valhalla to take down Sparta? Odds are one of the two teams are gonna stab the other in the back, as most alliances in the** _ **Hunger Games**_ **went when the numbers narrowed down. I know the enemy of my enemy is my associate but I doubt that Valhalla can restrain themselves after Sparta bites the dust. Battle Royale rules** _ **are**_ **that one team has to remain standing to win, and that includes any surviving teams that allied with another. Now look what reading the** _ **Hunger Games**_ **has done to me writing this match…**

 **I can't guarantee set dates for updates to this story due to my school year starting up again but I'll do what I can even when I have a suffocating amount of homework piled on me practically** _ **every**_ **day. I mean, when things are all said and done, what's stopping us from returning? No, I'm not abandoning this UNTIL it's over. Until then, I'll see you guys in the next chapter. Stay strong out there, Guardians!**


	22. II-X: Dirge de Nocte

_**Chapter X: Dirge de Nocte (Dirge of the Night)**_

 _ **Absolution Arc**_

* * *

 _1707 Hours, December 18, 2714_

 _Hall of Guardians, The Tower, The Last City_

"Are you sure about joining this?" Lord Shaxx sat at his desk in the Hall of Guardians, hands folded and on the desk. "I don't like the idea of sending a Guardian that's _currently_ in the middle of recovery after a life-threatening mission back into the battlefield."

"Lord Shaxx, I understand your concern for a Guardian's own health after being injured in a Darkness zone without a Ghost but I'm not like most Guardians," Excalibur argued, a cast over his right arm and across his chest. "Besides, you know as well as I do that I don't take 'no' for an answer even in this state I'm in."

"Listen Excalibur, as stubborn as you've become now, we lose Guardians left and right like Spectre taking out the Hive every day. You fully know what happens when you fall."

"I don't come back, I only live once, blah blah blah I get it," he leaned forward and put a hand on Shaxx's desk. "But you know what I can't stand? Hearing Adam and his group of 'friends' talk shit about the Dark Knights and alienating them from the rest of us. I accepted them as one of us even when the circumstances were not of the best possible reason for their exile. And since Adam's gonna be in the Battle Royale with the others, I want in."

Shaxx arose from his desk and stared the Gunslinger in the eyes. "Just for your own personal vendettas against him? Or is it something else you're hiding?"

"And what if I said it was both?"

"I've seen you and Adam fight before and trust me, the first encounter between you two was completely one-sided. You picked a fight with him back when you were just a new arrival in the Tower and he had the upper hand with his equipment."

"To which _he_ started!"

"You think I don't know that, Excalibur?! Regardless, you lost that fight because of being underequipped!"

"But look at me now! I'm ready to take him on now!"

"Not in the condition you're in!" bellowed Shaxx, the two feeling their blood boiling angrily and sending daggers at the other. "Do you have any idea how much Spectre would've disapproved of your behavior right now? You're his _student,_ for the Traveler's sake!"

"Oh trust me, I'm not doing this because of the score to settle with Adam, but also for him, his sister, and his friends! As much as I looked up to Spectre as both a teacher and Guardian while I was under the Ancient Vanguard, I can't stand for anyone putting down the best like that!"

Shaxx felt his fist tighten from the attitude this Guardian was giving as their staring contest went on. He saw the animosity in Excalibur's eyes and it won't stop growing. "...Fine. Under the condition that you at least partner up with one of the combatants to ensure you don't strain yourself from the fighting."

"Secretly put me as an ally in one of the teams in the match and it's a fair deal," Excalibur turned around and started to walk away from the Hall of Guardians before Shaxx stopped him.

"Listen, I don't want you to go past your limits in this state. And if I have to withdraw you from the match then I will. Do you understand, Excalibur?"

The Gunslinger scoffed and looked up the stairs to see his partner for the Battle Royale sitting on the railing to the entrance. "Since when have I ever kept my promise of not going beyond my limit?"

 _1456 Hours, December 18, 2714_

 _Shibuya District, Old Tokyo_

But the sounds of the gunshots never made their way to Aqua's ears.

Instead, she heard the sound of a low humming noise like something in flight. Not animal but of a sort of throwing disk. As it got louder it struck many bells in her head it brought something back. A memory that had been hidden away for years.

 _Is that…?_ Snapping back to reality, Aqua hit the deck when it was clear that the humming was within dangerous levels. Her suspicions were confirmed right when she heard the sound coming closer.

As the rest of Vahalla kept their weapons trained on the two Dark Knights, they failed to notice one thing. The next thing they knew, their weapons were knocked out of their hands by a blurring disk. A feeling like a razor-sharp blade cut through the back of their hands, forcing them to drop it when they tried to get it back from the ground.

Even as quick as the blur was, Aqua saw a glimpse of it mid-flight. It was a disk of sorts, with three curved blades protruding straight from the circular center. _No, it can't be!_

"Look out!" Donut yelled.

A shadow of a combatant was above them when the throwing blade had escaped their line of sight and the shadow crashed into the earth. Upon their landing, another shockwave erupted from their boots and swept Valhalla off their feet again. The shockwave struck the healer-sorceress and brawn of the _kazoku_ but instead of sweeping them off their feet the shockwave pushed them back a few feet away from them. She saw that it was a black and red Hunter that caused Valhalla's weapons to fall from their grasp, Neuroghast Cloak whishing about until it settled against their back. The humming of the thrown weapon came close, nearly missing Aqua's head and into the waiting hand of the owner who stretched his arm back to anticipate the return of the weapon. He caught it like an expert of using the throwing weapon, fingers wrapping around the center and pressing it against his gloved palm.

 _That weapon...!_ Aqua took a really good look at the weapon, which started sparking with radioactive-green sparks and toxin-colored gas. In contrast to the Hunter's color scheme, it was mainly black as space with the blades a dull gray from where the fuller starts to its edge. Just looking at the weapon shook Aqua to the core as memories started flooding through her mind. _That's... That's Hayden's Glaive! What's a Hunter doing with his Glaive?!_

The Hunter quickly rose from their crouch and swung it just as Tucker was about to cut him with his energy sword. The energy sword's dual blades got caught in one of the curving blades of the Glaive with ease, the Hunter and Tucker at a stalemate.

Excalibur gritted his teeth and stared at the swordsman in Valhalla with an intent to protect. Even if the energy sword was mere inches away from his hand, he ignored the burning sensation and continued to trap the blades in his Glaive's own.

"If I were you Dark Knight, I'd get your teammate out of here before the rest of Valhalla gets a chance to eliminate you!" said the Hunter, glancing back at Aqua and Cloud. "Don't worry, I'll hold them off!"

Just when he anticipated Tucker to pull off a dirty move to end the stalemate, Excalibur smashed his elbow in his helmeted face. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Colton and Lopez aiming their guns at him and started spraying rounds at him. Quickly, he grabbed hold of Tucker's sword-wielding arm and twisted it behind his back, disarming him and using him as a meat shield. Tucker attempted to get out of Excalibur's hold but instead found himself in a chokehold with one of the Gunslinger's knives at his neck. His Glaive retracted into a compact form under his wrist and reached for the black sidearm, Yami, holstered in his thigh holster. Swiftly drawing a bead on the two Titans and keeping Tucker at bay, he returned fire at them and some of the shots collided with the others diverting them from their flight path towards Excalibur. Yami's clip went dry and so did Colton and Lopez's rifles, prompting the Gunslinger to hit the slide release and holster it again.

"Guys—! Little help here!" croaked Tucker, clawing at Excalibur's arm to let go. The rest of Valhalla lowered their weapons to prevent their teammate from being shot at but kept it trained at the Hunter taking Tucker as a meat shield.

"Too bad. Not gonna happen." He stabbed Tucker in the chest and tore diagonally down to his lower left hip. Excalibur kicked his body into the direction of the two Titans and threw a throwing knife in the direction of Leonard Church who already aimed his sniper at his head. The knife struck the side of the sniper just as Church pulled the trigger sending the round into the ancient wall and towards the sun upon ricochet.

Donut already prepared his last rocket into Dragon's Breath and aimed at Excalibur, who already recalled his Glaive from his wrist and spun it around in his hand. He taunted Donut to attack him just by spinning the Glaive and fake yawning, to which the former put Dragon's Breath on his shoulder and pulled the trigger. _Tch, pathetic._ Excalibur threw the Glaive in his direction and rolled out of the way before the rocket hit him. Knowing the rocket launcher's unique ability to drop a napalm payload, the Gunslinger need only to have a visual on his throwing weapon. Just as the Glaive was about to make a head-on collision with the rocket, it suddenly jerked to the side its blades grazing through the side of the rocket. Donut hit the button to release the napalm payload but he didn't expect the incoming outcome. Instead of releasing the payload, the rocket exploded behind Excalibur normally and causing a controlled explosion.

Just as Donut wasn't paying attention to the speed of the Glaive, despite being fast, was enough for Donut to move out of the way before it hit his hands and disarm him again. Just as the Glaive was mere inches from the side where he was holding Dragon's Breath, he attempted to grab hold of the throwing weapon and use it against Excalibur.

Unknown to him, the Glaive only heeded its user's command. When Donut's hand was close to holding it, the weapon exploded in his proximity letting out a cloud of gas and a heavy aura of something else. The gas entered Donut's air filters in his helmet and already did he feel like suffocating. Dropping the Exotic rocket launcher, he fell to his knees clawing at his throat and wheezing for fresh air. His throat felt like it was being torn apart bit by painful bit and with each breath he tries to take, it only made the pain worsen and his eyesight blurring at a rapid rate. _The gas─! What is it!?_ Bile rose up to his throat, burning up his throat and forcing him to vomit inside his helmet. Even the smell of his own vomit worsened his current state. "H-h-help meeee!" cried Donut in spite of the pain caused by the gas.

Colton and Lopez got their sword-wielding teammate off of them and reloaded their rifles, opening fire at Excalibur. The Gunslinger looked back and started to run towards the wall next to him, dodging the bullet storm intended for him until he ran up it and jumped off. Just as he was above the two Titans, he threw down two smoke bombs at them, effectively clouding their vision and giving him a breather. His Glaive returned to his hand and he started spinning vertically downward with the throwing weapon. The Glaive's blades tore through Colton's weapon with ease on the way down, destroying it effectively when the Gunslinger returned to solid ground and did an uppercut. With the Glaive in his uppercutting hand, it spun furiously like a chainsaw at its maximum speed and tore through Colton's arms with ease. The Titan staggered back from losing his arms, leaving him open for another attack and Excalibur slashed across Colton's chestplate the Glaive still at chainsaw speed. As soon as the smoke settled, Excalibur let go of the Glaive from his hand and allowed it to orbit around him with the leftover spin it had.

* * *

Aqua was lucky enough that Hunter gave her time to escape with Cloud. After finding a place to hide in the alleyways, she laid the brawn of the _kazoku_ down on the ground but elevated his head to make it easier for him. Cloud was taking deeper breaths than normal after the shot he took, eyes closed but kept his head's gaze at her. It was starting to worry her gravely.

 _Where is it? Where's the bullet?_ She was panicking internally in spite of her body keeping composure. Aqua toggled the x-ray vision in her helmet and scanned his chest for the bullet. _There!_ Picking up where she left off, Aqua placed her hand over his chest. "Cloud, I'm gonna try to safely remove the bullet. I need you to bear with me on this, okay? It's going to hurt a lot."

Cloud faintly opened his eyes and glanced at the healer-sorceress. _"Hai. Kore wo norikoeru dake!_ Yes. Just get it over with!"

Taking a deep breath, Aqua concentrated her energy from her connections to the Void and started extracting the bullet with the delicacy she could use. It was painstakingly slow to align the bullet with the entry point of the bullet and she didn't have the time for it. For all she knows, South or her twin could execute her right now as she's taking out the bullet from Cloud's lung. Thankfully, she had a drone to scan for any hostiles during the time she's helping out Cloud. _That Hunter… Why or how does he have Hayden's Glaive?! It's not possible for any Guardian to utilize it just as he did!_ As she was focusing on Cloud's wound, her mind became a battleground between the situation at hand and what she saw from the Hunter that stopped her and Cloud from being executed. _Hayden's dead and I know a Guardian didn't kill him;_ he _did. And only_ he _has Hayden's Glaive kept as a memento. Could it be…?_

* * *

Unlike his human teammates, Lopez put his arms up to defend from the Glaive's orbiting spins despite the rapid rate of its seemingly never-ending speed. Even though his gauntlets were being torn up by the throwing weapon, he continued to defend himself. When the Glaive started to slow down, Excalibur grabbed it mid-flight and shrunk back into his wrist. When Lopez looked up and aimed his rifle in Excalibur's direction, he was greeted to the sight of a double barreled weapon in his face. The two stared down at each other, fingers resting against the triggers of their weapons. Excalibur's shotgun was at point blank range and so was Lopez's rifle.

"Face it Lopez, an auto rifle isn't gonna cut it against a shotgun. Might as well give up."

 _"Sobre mi cadaver._ Over my dead body." Lopez tightened his grip on his auto rifle.

Excalibur scoffed through his teeth. "Your loss, _amigo_." Before Lopez could get the chance to fire his auto rifle, Excalibur squeezed the trigger to Tigris and unloaded the shells in the shotgun. Lopez's helmet exploded from the extreme amounts of shotgun pellets burrowing onto his visor and the fragments tore through his Exo face until it suffered from the same fate as his helmet. The remaining Titan crumpled to the ground, shaking violently from the loss of his head until he stopped.

 _Three down… Two taken down from my Glaive and shotgun, and the other dead by the viral gas from the Glaive._ He saw Church trying to draw a shot at him and broke open his shotgun, quickly loading in shells and slamming in the break-action chamber back into place. Church fired again, to which Excalibur didn't need to move at all… since he missed his shot! _Typical of Church to miss his shots. Shouldn't be hard to take him down! Especially with his Super being used on Leon!_ With the flick of his other wrist, he called back his knife and chain and threw it in his direction while Leonard was busy complaining about his aim. When the chain wrapped around Leonard's neck, Excalibur grabbed hold of the chain and pulled him in to punching range. Right before Leonard collided with Excalibur, the Gunslinger produced three knifes in between his fingers and delivered a deadly uppercut with his bladed fist. The blades tore from his chest up to his face, piercing through the visor and leaving a pair of bloodied marks on Church's face.

After kicking Church's body away from him and into a wall, the bladed knuckles retracted into his palm and he tucked away the knives into his pack. "Not bad…but I've seen better," he sensed that there was one still standing and whipped around. "Still standing after that wound, Tucker? I'm surprised."

"I'm tougher than you think, 30," countered the Hunter, somehow in possession of his energy sword and hand covering his bloodied chest.

"As if. Valiant to the end? You're done, Tucker," Excalibur holstered his Tigris and reached for a hilt on his back.

 _Wait, since when did he ever get his hands on a sword?_ Tucker watched as Excalibur unsheathed a sword. Once he pulled it from its sheath, it was revealed not to be his replicated Raze-Lighter but a katana. The blade was a dull grayish-black and its hilt a braided black and gold, further complimented by a sword mounting─traditionally known as a 'tsuba' in Japan─resembling a European dragon's head and a similar dragon design running across the blade's surface. An ornament hung from the hilt, signifying some form of importance or mastery from its appearance alone.

"Cool blade you got there. But it's not as badass as mine, though," Tucker charged towards Excalibur.

As though he's fought speedy enemies before, Excalibur threw his katana up just as Tucker's energy sword was mere inches away from his body sending it away from its intended course. Moving his katana's sheath from his back to his side, an ancient text was etched along the sheath's edge giving it the name of 'Interitum'. Quickly, Excalibur slashed at Tucker's feet one-handed which to his surprise he dodged despite the wound. In this opening, Tucker went for another stab to Excalibur's chest but was blocked by the Gunslinger using both his katana and its sheath to deflect it. Before Tucker knew it, Excalibur stabbed Interitum at him in a flurry of the blows hitting multiple points in his body without drawing as much blood.

"Tch, how amateurish. Can't even grip your sword right when wounded and relying on one strike?! Pathetic!" taunted Excalibur. _No wonder even the best swordsmen in the Tower can't stand up to anyone like me. That level of swordplay is child's play!_ Even as he dodged Tucker's weakened attempts to land a serious hit on Excalibur, he felt a dark energy crawling up to his arm from Interitum. He wanted to resist such a temptation, but this time he _needs_ it. "Is that all you've got?! I've seen Silver fight better than that in the same state as you!" he saw a sphere at his feet and backstepped away from the explosion, using his Neuroghast Cloak as a shield from the blast and charged towards Tucker.

 _Damn, he's good! Guess it's time to use my trump card!_ Tucker gritted his teeth and in spite of the pain from his chest wound and the 'thousand stabs', went for a lunge across Excalibur's chest, following with a slash to his legs when the previous attack only grazed his Chestplate. Expertly, Excalibur stepped on the energy sword and impaled it to the ground with Tucker still holding onto the sword's handle and reversed his grip on Interitum, using the blunt end of the katana's hilt as a club of sorts to strike the Bladedancer in the stomach. _W-what?!_

With Interitum switched to his dominant left hand, Excalibur returned it to its sheath and called out his Glaive once more before tripping Tucker with his foot. As though time had stopped for Excalibur, Tucker remained in his tripping pose and raised the Glaive. "Checkmate." With one of the Glave's blades aimed down at Tucker's chest, he allowed time to continue and impaled Tucker in the chest with the blades. This time, the blades tore deep enough than his knife did causing Tucker to cough out blood in his helmet.

"You…got me…good," were Tucker's final words before he disappeared into the dropship with the rest of his teammates.

 _"Leonard Church, Colton, Lopez, Donut, and Tucker has been eliminated by Combatant 30. Now only ten combatants remain."_ Lord Shaxx announced once more, eliminating everyone but Carolina, the _kazoku_ , Sparta, and the remaining two Freelancers from the roster.

Like when he eliminated Silver, Excalibur's Glaive retracted back into his wrist and stared into his hand that held Interitum. A dark mist formulated in his palm and pain surged through his arm forcing him to hiss painfully and grasp his upper arm. _Damn, not now! Why now of all times!?_ He dropped to his knees and groaned from the pain, the surges becoming more powerful with each passing second and increasing the pain. Even the mist started turning darker until it reached a pitch black.

 _Must…get…up!_ Weakly, Excalibur got up on his feet and reached for a syringe in his pack. Without second thoughts, he plunged the needle in his upper arm and injected the serum within it. He started to cough violently from the serum's instantaneous effects and dropped the syringe, body twitching like crazy as the serum did its job. Just as the pain started to subside, Excalibur's body relaxed a few seconds after the serum's injection and started limping away. He continued to grasp his upper arm as he limped, taking sharp breaths from the tiny surges of pain left behind.

"Reaper, can you hear me?"

The comms channel chirped to life, showing a radio wavelength of Reaper's voice. _"Yeah, I hear you loud and clear."_

"Did you do your part like I asked you to?"

 _"Telling Aqua where Leon is and assuring her he's stable? Done. Still tracking down Carolina and Sparta; arena's a huge place,"_ answered his Bladedancer partner.

"You may want to hold yourself on finding them, Reaper," out of the corner of his eye, the Gunslinger caught a glimpse of purple walking in another direction. Avoiding the chance that he was seen, he hid behind cover and took a peek.

 _"Why, you're tailing them too?"_

"Not in that sense, Reap," he looked up at the rooftops to find her perched on the ledge and waving at him. He nodded and gripped Interitum's hilt tightly, his Glaive-wielding hand tightening into a fist. "I might have an idea where Carolina and Lightning may be."

 _"Something tells me that you know more about this place than I do."_

"I do," Excalibur wracked through his head to remember what place in the Shibuya district of Tokyo would be best suited for a no bars fight until it struck him.

"They're at the Yoyogi Gymnasium."

 _ **-Destiny: Skyfall-**_

Lightning stepped onto the large stadium-esque room, shield at the ready. Her eyes darted across the room, checking for any blind points that anyone could use to ambush her. As empty as the area was, it serves as a perfect gladiatorial arena for her to fight one-on-one. The winter wind sent chills down her spine due to being close to dusk and the ambiance. She stepped into the center of the room, the afternoon sky serving as the lights should this place be ever restored.

But given her entire life of training, she knew she wasn't alone here.

"So, you took up my challenge." Carolina emerged from the shadows, arms crossed and staring at the Dark Knight with a competitive side showing in her walk. "You're sure that no one from your team followed you?"

"Why would I do that? I'm not like Adam who relies on his team to back him up from a challenge like this," Lightning folded her arms across her chest, flexing her fingers to prepare for the fight between the two. "And I assume you kept your end of the deal, Carolina."

"Your team is still active, not mine. Just been eliminated by Combatant 30. Don't understand how a Freelancer can last this long in the Battle Royale, but I'm assuming he's allied with you."

"It's beyond my understanding as well but I _do_ know that guy didn't ally with us from my understanding," countered Tohsaka. "You know why I'm doing this, right?"

"As much as I will admit that Adam is one hell of an asshole towards you, your brother, and your friends, I can't say that I understand your situation and the circumstances if you lose."

"I don't know why I'm saying this, but you and I are similar in one way or another."

Underneath her helmet, the cyan Huntress cracked a faint smile at Tohsaka's comment. "Somehow, I feel the same way Lightning. Even though you're only a fairly new arrival to the Tower."

"Shame that we have to fight," Tohsaka reached for her holstered CP99 and tossed it to the side, followed by her Empress of the Abyss auto rifle. She reached for her sheathed Dusk Repulsor and drew it out, the double-edged blade glowing crimson red in the darkness and her shield expanding to full size. "No hard feelings then, Carolina?"

Carolina already threw aside her firearms and put up her fists, keeping her array of knives and tactical equipment at the ready. She smirked, ready to pick up where they left off yesterday. Both Dark Knight and Huntress locked their gazes at the other, grinding a foot against the snow for traction in the snow-covered stage.

"No hard feelings, Lightning."

* * *

 **A/N: Well, looks like these two are ready for their fight! Who's got the popcorn ready?**

 **Prophet: Seriously? Popcorn? What're you, a kid?**

 **Me: Tch, it was a joke. Besides, it'd be interesting to see how their fight plays out.**

 **Prophet: For once, I'm with you.**

 **Me: By the way, since when did Excalibur get his hands on that Glaive?**

 **Prophet: Beats me, and its intriguing how that weapon could emit a viral gas of that scale didn't affect its user as well as being able to cut off a Guardian's arms at that speed it was spinning.**

 **Me: I'd like to give a little science lecture but you'd probably wouldn't listen.**

 **Prophet: Damn straight.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XXI): Guess those unknown Hunters last chapter show themselves here! And a triple throwdown between Lightning, Carolina, and Adam? Who knows if someone's gonna crash the throwdown or maybe even join in? I** _ **do**_ **like that idea though…**

 **fierywarlock999: Welcome to the site! And yes, that hopefully clears your doubts that was Cloud from Final Fantasy (side note: I used the Smash Bros 4 version of Cloud for his speaking dialogue and both Smash and Dissidia Final Fantasy for his moves. Regardless, Cloud is Cloud)!**

 **And before I go, if any of you are wondering what the Glaive looks like, just google 'Dark Sector Glaive' for its image. As for those asking if I will do a Rise of Iron-inspired storyline (since Rise of Iron is closing in soon), I'm most likely not going to do so because I may or may not have a sequel already planned after** _ **Destiny: Skyfall**_ **. Till next time Guardians!**


	23. II-XI: Unleashing the Beast

**_Chapter XI: Unleashing the Beast_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1602 Hours, December 18, 2714_

 _Yoyogi Gymnasium, Shibuya District, Old Tokyo_

From the hole in the ceiling above Carolina and Lightning, a single scale fell from the sky. It rocked gracefully in the wind like a mother putting a baby to sleep, a song whispered in the breath of the wind. Nyx perched on the edge of the hole, softly crying when it saw the Dark Knight and Huntress preparing for combat. A tear fell from one of its slitted eyes, colliding with the scale still beautifully descending. Once the scale settled in the snow below, Nyx spread its wings and flew away back to its mommy and daddy.

"Artemis, can you scan Carolina and check for her strong points?"

Her A.I appeared next to her, taking her holographic cube form instead of her Ghost shell. **"Only thing I'll say right now is that she's one hell of a martial artist. That stance she's taking proves that level of finesse she's got. You're probably gonna have your hands full with her with your sword and shield."** Informed CIA, the wavelengths within her cube pulsing with each word.

"Noted. Anything else I need to know?"

 **"** **Aside from the typical 'Keep your guard up at all times and keeping your rage in check' warnings I'd give you? Watch out for her sudden moves with her grappling gun and knives."**

"Trust me, this won't be a problem to keep my rage in check. This is just like how Nero was when we dueled for both the fun of it and training to compensate for our weaknesses." Memories started to surface in Tohsaka's mind, recalling the events she mentioned to her A.I and thankful that they fought each other for those purposes alone.

 **"** **Except this time it's a girl that fights with martial arts and not swords that has their own unique purposes."**

"And one hell of a hot-headed, competitive attitude."

* * *

"Got anything on her, Church?"

Like Artemis in her A.I form, a holographic figure appeared next to Carolina taking the form of her brother Leonard Church. **"Yeah, uh, aside from the info she released about herself and the rest of her team I got nothing."**

"That's not what I meant, Church. What're you seeing from her right now?"

 **"'** **Kay, apart from her sword and shield she seems quite adept at close quarters combat. And I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that she's had almost all of her life training in sword and shield combat aside from her marksmanship."**

"Then again, Lightning and her team were born like normal people and she did confirm that they were trained since they were thirty years old," added Carolina.

 **"** **Seems pretty insane for the leaders of the Dark Knights to have her generation start as child soldiers. On a side note, she reminds me of Tex…"**

"That's what she reminds me of as well, just with a more understanding and caring heart underneath that exterior and not a brute of a bitch. This could be interesting…"

* * *

 **"** **Reminds me of you when you were proving to be better than Hibari, always trying to surpass her and sparking a heated rivalry,"** recalled Artemis.

Lightning growled at the mention of her rival's name, gripping Dusk Repulsor's hilt tightly. "That bitch got what she deserved. Even though she was a traitor to Red Veil she deserved to die a traitor's death!"

Artemis looked over at Carolina and then back to her partner, noting a faint energy outline of claws replacing her fingers. **"Okay, enough pep talk and sulking over a dead bitch of a rival. Go get her, girl."**

Artemis disappeared from her side the instant Lightning took the first steps and raced towards Carolina with her Dusk Repulsor and Aegis shield, going for an overhead strike. As expected from a martial artist, Carolina dodged the slash from the sword and hit her opponent in the chest with a punch to which her fist met the blazing surface of Aegis. In the instant her fist hit her shield's surface, Lightning shield bashed Carolina back a few feet backflipping away the same length and slashing. Dusk Repulsor only tore through Carolina's cloak instead of making its mark before being deflected by one of her plentiful knives.

Both of them landed on their feet in a mix of grace and urgency before kneeling on a knee, the sounds of a device powering up in their ears before charging towards each other with the speed of a rocket. Carolina broke out of the sprint and started striking Lightning with her martial arts expertise, laying a beatdown against the surface of Aegis. Keeping her body within her shield's protection, Lightning had to steel herself from the barrage of punches and kicks before reversing her grip on Dusk Repulsor and striking from a blind spot.

Carolina barely dodged the surprise attack and backflipped in front of Tohsaka, kicking in her shield and making space between the two. Quickly, she whipped out a baton from her pack and flicked her wrist revealing a high-powered stun stick. Spinning it around like a sword, she charged towards the Dark Knight and swung, only for her stun stick to cross with Dusk Repulsor's blade. The unstable Arc energy from the baton jumped from the stun stick into Tohsaka's sword, indirectly attacking her through the shocks when her sword-bearing right arm started sparking with the Arc electricity.

When the electricity jumped to Tohsaka's arm, it barely felt like it hurt and instead like one of those cheap joybuzzers used on April Fool's. As a result to this, Dusk Repulsor's blood red glow started to morph into a sinister purple in a shockingly short amount of time. Carolina felt the heat radiating from Dusk Repulsor, far more intense than the Solar flames the Guardians use and most likely deadlier than the former.

"I don't think you'd like to see what happens next when fire and Arc energy mix," Lightning kept her strength on her sword, stalemating with Carolina's stun baton enough to stop them from being face to face. Both combatants jumped back when they heard the shrill cry of electricity sparking and the flames being ignited. Spinning the double-edged sword in her hand, Lightning's blade ignited into flames before the Arc electricity boomed across its surface.

"What the–?" Carolina barely had time to react when Lightning dashed up towards her again and started stabbing at her with the element fused blade. She dodged a number of the stabs despite the flame's intensity enough to melt the snow and the Arc energy being used against her when it jumped from the blade to her baton and knives. _Damn, she stabs like she's fighting with a rapier instead of an arming sword!_ Carolina dodged a slice that would've cut her head off cleanly and tripped up Lightning.

The snow around them was blown away the instant Lightning hit the ground backfirst, a shockwave of crimson energy shaking up the ground. When the shockwave hit Carolina's feet, she too fell just the same as Lightning and the two swiftly got back on their feet the former getting up with the speed and grace of a feline.

"Church, what the hell was that?!"

 **"I don't know, but I have a feeling tripping her over or knocking her down triggers that shockwave as a counter!"**

Lightning's shield started to unbind itself from her arm and threw her arm forward like she was throwing a frisbee. The Aegis shield struck Carolina in her chestplate, causing her to stagger back from the force of the shield and unaware of Lightning creating a portal in front of her and appearing right before her. She then saw that the seemingly heavy arming sword in the Dark Knight's hand had morphed into a javelin-like weapon and the thrown Aegis back to its owner's arm, backing away in time before she was skewered from above. Instead of countering, Lightning threw her shield up to defend herself and throwing her transformed Dusk Repulsor at her opponent, increasing its flight time thanks to her telekinetic power. Carolina caught the javelin and launched it out of Lightning's reach, striking Lightning from multiple angles with both her fists and stun baton as fast as she can. Just as she was close to striking the Dark Knight in the face with her boot, Lightning caught her leg mid kick.

 _What?!_ For once since the fight began, Carolina felt genuinely afraid after witnessing Lightning's combat capability for herself. As for the hand around her ankle, it wasn't a death grip that stopped it but a defensive, almost martial arts-esque hold. Carolina tried to free herself from her opponent's grasp but the firm grip was proving her attempts to be futile.

 **"** **Oh, this isn't good."** Church muttered.

Lightning launched the Huntress into one side of the derelict stands around the gymnasium, creating a screen of dust and snow upon her impact. Aegis retracted into its inactive form on her arm and she whipped out another weapon with Artemis's help, this time a beautifully crafted white and golden bō staff that contrasts her black and red coloring. _It's been a while since I used mother's bō staff. I just hope I can hold her off with it until I get Dusk Repulsor back. Sorry mother…_

"Church, I thought you said she only knew how to use a sword and shield!" Carolina said, getting back on her feet after that hard of a launch and drawing out her knives like they were twin daggers.

 **"** **How was I supposed to know that her sword could transform into a javelin, throw her shield,** ** _and_** **be able to counter your kick with her own hands?!"** argued the Huntress's A.I companion. **"Now she has a bō staff? What kind of combatant are we facing, Carolina?!"**

"I'll say this now, but she's no Tex… Sure she has a similar level of skill and a lot of surprises up her sleeves, but she's got to be on her last trick," just as Carolina got back on the snow covered stage feet away from Lightning, an explosion ignited between the two. Both of them backed away from the blast radius and turned at the same direction.

"Adam!"

"Did you two miss me?" Menacingly, the white and brown-colored leader of Fireteam Sparta stomped slowly towards the fighting ground, his modified Cabal projection rifle slung over his shoulder. "I didn't. It wasn't that hard to follow you. Now that I have my two most hated bitches in front of me, might as well get my problems over with."

Carolina gripped her knives's handles tightly, and so did Lightning with her mother's weapon. Both of them were within close proximity to the other, close to having their arms bump into each other. The Dark Knight and Bladedancer shared a look at the other, despite being enemies a few seconds ago.

"Well, this has become quite the fight."

"Agreed. Adam has a score to settle with you, and so do I with him."

Lightning looked over at Carolina. "What'd he do to you?"

"He left me and York for dead when we were fighting the Vex on Venus. Went for the target instead of helping us. Damn bastard…"

"Can't say I've been in a similar situation. Where you and your partner were left for dead, I was lured into a trap with my brother and a teammate of ours that showed her true colors."

Carolina scoffed. "Let's save our stories for another time. Right now we got him to worry about!"

"I couldn't agree more. Think you can keep up with me?"

"Suggesting an alliance?" Lightning glanced over at Carolina and stared her down.

"Artemis, reroute all power from equilibrium style to _yūgana gādo_ style."

 **"** **Boost to defense and mobility coming right up."** Artemis acknowledged, Lightning's armor remaining largely unchanged aside from golden linings running across it like circuitry and her Aegis shield covering her entire arm.

"Church, I need armor enhancements."

Epsilon appeared next to her shoulder. **"Which ones?"**

"Give me the anti-Feedback Fence enhancements!"

 **"You got it."** Like Lightning, Carolina's armor began to encompass over the cloth-like armor Hunters and Huntresses valued for mobility. She wrapped her fingers around her knives's handles, holding them in a reverse grip.

"You sure your enhancement can hold out against this guy?"

"I could say the same about you, using your staff and sword."

Lightning smirked and located Dusk Repulsor, still impaled in a support beam holding up the roof. "Thankfully, my weapons don't count as melee attacks. So don't worry about me getting countered by his Feedback Fence."

Adam had barely reloaded his custom projection rifle when both Dark Knight and Bladedancer rushed towards him, dodging his grenade launcher-like shots with ease thanks to their speed boosters. Lightning made the first attack and broke free from her sprint, striking the lower end of her inherited staff to Adam's side. Quickly, she placed the other end in between Adam's arms, the end meeting at his neck and kicked the bladed projection rifle from his reach. The staff was withdrawn from his throat and smashed against the side of his helmet, the trauma enough to disorient him from thinking straight.

"Not gonna happen this time, bitch!" Adam caught the end that struck his helmet and held on tightly until Carolina attacked him from behind, freeing his grasp from the staff and kicked back several feet by the Dark Knight. Adam stopped himself from crashing into the wall and snarled, forsaking his rifle and charging towards his enemies.

Lightning glanced at the pillar where her transforming sword was impaled and broke into a run for it, leaping and grabbing the handle until she was hanging from it with both hands. Looking down at the center stage to see Carolina and Adam duking it out, she grit her teeth and let one hand go. With her hand extended towards the Titan and Huntress, her palm started to pulsate with Void energy and launched a crimson sphere in their direction.

Carolina wasn't faring as well as she thought. When she struck Adam in his helmeted face, the Titan retaliated with two punches to her chest and abdomen, both with the force exerted from a Cabal's shield bash. She staggered back from the punches and put her fists up. Even though she wasn't as strong as he was, she laid a fast smackdown at him with her fists striking the pressure points despite his Feedback Fence sending her punches' kinetic energy back at her.

 ** _Not working, Carolina!_**

 _I can_ see _that!_ Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw the sphere made from Lightning headed for Adam. Jumping back, she shielded herself and waited for the sphere's impact with her arms and cloak. It exploded in Adam's face, releasing a flash of bright light and stunning him.

"Damn you!" roared Adam, wildly swinging his punches until Lightning appeared from above, flipping over him and throwing part of her shield. The Aegis fragment she launched forced Adam to fall forward and into Carolina, where she caught him by the neck and pummeled his visor in. Her last punch smashed the orange visor in, leaving him vulnerable should either of the two use firearms to finish him off. After that punch, the cyan Huntress threw him back at the Dark Knight, to which the thrown fragment of her shield returned to her. Aegis expanded once more and Lightning held on to her shield-bearing arm as she smashed him downward with it, bringing her back to the ground with Adam.

Lightning rolled out of Adam's reach when he reached for her neck and spun her bō staff, sheathing her recovered Dusk Repulsor at the same time. As Adam got back up, his Cabal projection rifle came back to his grasp and charged at Lightning. "I'll cut you up into tiny pieces, you bitch!"

The white and brown Titan went for an overhead slash and Lightning held back the blade with her bō staff. Instead of cleaving through the staff, the curved blade barely nicked it and became somewhat stuck. _I'm grateful for your parting gift to me, mother! For once I'm glad its indestructible!_

Without warning, Lightning slid her mother's staff down and kicked him in the chest towards Carolina, the latter with her stun baton out and striking against his body until she hit Adam with it like a sword cleaving diagonally across his chest. Sparks of Arc energy streaked across his chestplate until Adam caught hold of Carolina's neck and lifted her up.

 **"Carolina!"**

"I should've left you and York for dead back on Venus. But knowing that you're the only one alive between the two of you, maybe I''ll let you pay a visit to him in the afterlife!"

Carolina struggled to breathe under the pressure of his hand constricting her neck, clawing at his wrists and kicking at him to no avail. With her vision blurring at a rapid rate, she could make out the Dark Knight charging towards him, Aegis at the ready and so is her Dusk Repulsor in its javelin form. The moment when Carolina looked back at Adam, she heard the sound of a device powering up and his Feedback Fence charging up.

"Don't...!"

Too late.

Just as Lightning's javelin was so close to piercing through Adam's armor, a sudden burst of wind tore through the area, blowing away all of the snow in the arena. Lightning saw time crawling into a complete halt, leaving her in her stabbing motion with her Dusk Repulsor's javelin form. The world then became lost all color to her except for Adam whose armor started sparking with electricity.

Artemis popped out near Tohsaka's arm, her cube form moving in the frozen world around her. It was now that the A.I saw a sniper trail headed right for her from a sniper's perch and tracked the trail down to find South with her 1000-Yard Stare aimed _directly_ at Lightning's side. **"Light? Can you hear me?"** No response from her partner. **"Aw, you have to be kidding me. Not a time distortion device!"**

The only one that is able to move was the white and brown Titan. Menacingly, he faced the charging Dark Knight and put Carolina right in front of the javelin's tip and prepared his Brute Shot. Growling, he let go of the Bladedancer's neck, suspending her in the time-frozen world and raised the curved blade of his weapon overhead with both hands.

 **"Aw, son of a mother–"** As suddenly as the time distortion device activated, the black and white of the world got their colors back. **"Light!"**

Lightning had the most minimal of time to react when she saw the body of the cyan Huntress in the path of her javelin's tip and Adam raising his weapon overhead. Like a chain reaction, she felt the shot of a high-powered round piercing through her ribcage, followed by her transformed Dusk Repulsor impaling through Carolina's back and effectively piercing through her heart. She wanted to scream from what she's done, but only the blood from her shot escaped from her mouth and Adam brought the curved blade down.

Her figure smashed against the wall feet behind her, bringing a few of the ancient concrete down on her. Lightning gasped painfully as though it was her last, falling down on her hands and knees just after hitting the wall. Her chestplate was torn up from Adam's blade, exposing some of her bloodied chest from the cut. Her blood spilled onto the snow below her, staining the powdery stuff red even as she held a hand over where it hurt the most. Her heart hammered against her ears, crescendoing the closer she was to being defeated. Lightning glanced at her HUD, where her health gauge was replaced with numbers and a steady beeping indicating her shields are gone. Two hundred and steadily dropping.

 **"Dammit, focusing all power on the emergency stabilizers! I got you Light,"** Artemis cried out, reverting her partner's armor back to its original state and a glow erupted from her wound, even her helmet retreating back into the neck guard. **"Light, can you hear me?!"**

Adam approached the downed Dark Knight, reloading his projection rifle and gesturing South to stand down for now. He aimed the barrel at her, ready to win this Battle Royale once and for all.

"A-Artemis…!"

 **"Hey, don't talk now! You're still bleeding!"**

"R-remove the inhibitors." Requested Lightning, painfully looking up and watching the Titan make his way towards her. The Darkness within her was growing alarmingly, and the voices tempting her to kill Adam and take his Light were in her ears again.

 **"Are you crazy?! I'm not doing it! Do you remember last time I released your inhibitors? You had to be heavily sedated to bring you back!"** The A.I looked down and saw something formulating at Lightning's armored fingers. Like spectral claws. They clawed at the snow like any animal with claws would to sand or dirt, the ethereal outline slowly filling. **"Lightning, there's a reason why your armor was installed with inhibitors: to make sure you don't lose control of yourself! If you release it now, you might do something you'll regret!"**

"Do I have a choice?!" Roars the Dark Knight, her eyes now an uncontrollable flaring gold. "Now I know… He's the one that shot Cloud in the throat and took away his ability to speak in English! Do you think I'm just gonna let him walk away with it after twelve years!? Nero's life is on the line as well and I'd do anything to make sure he doesn't get the plug pulled on him!" The claws finally formalized, razor sharp and sparking out of control.

Artemis inched away from her partner when she saw the ethereal claws and swore that the gold in her eyes was _alive_. **[** ** _There's no talking her out of this, is there? She just won't listen to reason once this happens…_** **] "…All right. I'm deactivating the inhibitors. Just promise me and your brother that you won't lose yourself to the Darkness."**

Artemis unlocked the inhibitors within Lightning's armor, preventing the flow of whatever inhibited something within her from reaching her bloodstream. The Dark Knight started to pant angrily the moment the inhibitors stopped working, armor morphing into a newer look rapidly. Grunting and shaking violently, Lightning clawed at the snow with her ethereal claws like someone undergoing a painful transformation her vision drowning everything she saw in a bloody red.

"I was expecting more of a fight from you. Guess you're just as pathetic as your brother," Adam stopped dead in his tracks and kept a lock on the downed Dark Knight. "Looks like I win. Goodbye, Dark Knight trash!" He pulled the trigger and drowned Lightning in a barrage of shots, the rubble behind her finally free and burying her alive.

A scream tore through the battleground, the rubble that buried Lightning blown away. Shocked, the Titan reloaded his rifle and turned around. Standing there was the Dark Knight herself, her armor morphed into a sleeker yet extremely durable variant and her ethereal claws ready to tear into something. An aura enveloped her entire body like a fire and her face bearing blackened vein-like markings, her breathing aggressive and heavy.

"What the–?!"

Lightning roared towards the heavens, the crimson aura around her now even violent like a fire. Red waves struck the Titan at the same time she screamed in rage. Adam tried to move but his body wouldn't respond, almost as though his armor was in lockdown. When Adam looked up, the enraged Dark Knight had pounced at him like a feline ready to attack tackling him down to the ground and disarming him in one swift move. She started clawing at his chest, cutting through the plating in a berserk rage. Catching a glimpse of the Feedback Fence on his arm, Lightning made an immediate grab for it and ripped it off his arm, her claws tearing through the materials and throwing it away from them.

"Get the hell off me!" Adam pulled out his FWC handcannon and fired the magazine into her abdomen. Instead of recoiling from the pain, Lightning remained on him and the bullets' marks clear. _How is she withstanding the shots?!_

Lightning's clawed hands went for her victim's throat, the ethereal claws digging into the rubber materials and drawing blood. Adam grabbed hold of her wrists to get them off but it was futile. Her sudden spike in strength was enough to perhaps surpass a typical Titan's strength. He punched her in the face. Instead, it only pissed her off even further.

South watched the action unfold and reloaded her sniper rifle, aiming at Lightning's head. Through her scope, the Dark Knight stopped and faced South's position, hand outstretched towards her. Before she knew it, she felt the tightness of a cable or rope constricting around her neck and her body flying towards Lightning. Once she was mere inches from her, she looked down. One of Lightning's claws have torn through her robes and out her back like she impaled herself on a steel pipe. She tried to speak but instead of words coming out of her mouth, it was blood. South cursed at the Dark Knight and Lightning only snarled menacingly back before taking her other hand and placing it over her face. In one fell move, Lightning jerked South's head to the side and broke her neck.

* * *

"Shaxx, you need to call off this match _right now_!" Zavala watched the Battle Royale unfold from a live feed in the Hall of Guardians, turning to the Crucible Handler.

"I understand how dangerous it is for everyone, but this has to be settled between Adam and the Dark Knights!"

"Look at what Lightning did. She _impaled_ a Guardian clean through their chest with her own hands and broke their neck! This is getting dangerous enough to respark our last Battle Royale!"

Ikora watched the feed with Zavala and Cayde, focusing on the Dark Knight in question. "That power is exactly as we feared it a century ago. It twists us into monsters in human form, hungry for the Light. Yet the Dark Knights have not harnessed or controlled it. But how is she using another Super when she had already used one?"

 **"That Super isn't what you thought it was,"** Primus stated in his A.I form, facing Ikora. **"There are some hidden abilities granted to us by both our subclasses and our familiars. However, only one of those hidden abilities is artificial to her."**

"Artificial?"

 **"You see, Lightning had one very traumatic experience that almost broke her completely. She was...captured by a rival faction of ours and experimented on, even tortured for their twisted plan,"** MI6's holographic cube almost faded from existence, the wavelengths with barely a pulse. **"At the time, she was a Nova: a female Dark Knight subclass that can use antimatter as a weapon. Her captors were experimenting on making Dark Knights with dual subclasses, and she was the unlucky test subject. It almost broke her mental state, and if Spectre and the others weren't there to find and rescue her she would've been lost to reason."**

"So you are saying that second subclass is…?"

 **"Yes, the one Lightning is using right now. Valkyr, a tortured subclass that lost all sense of reason and is forevermore a ball of pure rage. That was why Lightning's armor was outfitted to have inhibitors installed. After that incident, she was prone to violent fits of rage and sudden outbursts of hysteria. It left her scarred since then."**

"Yikes, so that's why Lightning doesn't get angry in outrageous situations. She could've lost herself in that subclass." Cayde whistled, arms folded and listening to MI6's story. "Man, almost I feel sorry for Adam pissing her off. Those claws of hers aren't kidding around."

"So this experiment performed on her is permanent? With no way to reverse it?"

MI6's body 'whirred'. **"Unfortunately, yes. The Perrin Sequence really did a number on her, since all of the Dark Knight subclasses are literally blood-bound to them."**

Cayde glances towards the monitor showing the Battle Royale. "And I thought us Guardians had it rough enough with the Darkness. Turns out that the Dark Knights fight on two fronts: a war within and amongst themselves."

* * *

 _Die, die, die, die, die,_ die _!_

That was the only thing the rage-induced Lightning could think about. As she kept on clawing at Adam's chestplate until she was sure she hit flesh, she grabbed Adam by the throat and pinned him down. She was sure she was saying the word over and over again, but only screams of uncontrollable anger left her lips.

 **"Light, that's enough! You'll kill him at this rate!"**

Lightning threw one of her clawed hands at the holographic A.I, snarling and grinding her teeth. _I can beat him! He must pay for what he did to Cloud and Nero. To us!_ She raised a claw high above her head, sharpened tips pointed at him. _I must make him suffer! And r_ _ **ob him of his Light**_ _!_

 **"That's it, I'm inhibiting you right now! You're letting the Darkness take control of you!"**

Snarling again, the Dark Knight tightened her grip on Adam's throat. "It's over, Adam! _Die!_ "

Before she knew it, the aura around her had quickly dispersed and her markings on her face fading away. _No!_ Several small pricks ran all across her body, the inhibiting agent reentering her bloodstream. Her strength sapped away from her, eyes widened when she saw her own ethereal claws fading away like a ghost.

Below her, Adam grinned and pressed the barrel of his handcannon against Lightning's abdomen. "Gotcha." He pulled the trigger.

Lightning staggered backwards from the shots, letting go of him and clutching her abdomen. "No…! It can't end like this!" She was kicked back into the wall, adding more to her injuries and letting out a pained cry. Using the wall to regain balance, Lightning was gasping for air, the blood staining her hand and the ground red.

Adam retrieved his projection rifle and growled at the weakened Dark Knight. "I knew Dark Knights didn't have the guts to accept the Darkness. And here you just proved it. So long, scum!" He threw the bladed projection rifle, spinning like a frisbee and making her way towards her.

 _Guys, I'm sorry. You have to pick up the slack from where I left off…_ Lightning winced, accepting her inevitable elimination from the Battle Royale and chances of victory diminished by half of her prediction. She waited for the blade to decapitate her, impale her, _something_!

But it never came.

Lightning opened her eyes to the sound of a helmet being cracked and saw a Hunter within the flight path of Adam's projection rifle. Shards of a Celestial Nighthawk was in the air around the Hunter's face, the golden gleam fading in the setting sun. _Why? Why would a Guardian care about saving one of us?!_

The Hunter fell over like they were thrown by an Ogre, projection rifle long gone from being recovered. He was on his hands and feet, panting after taking the fatal blow from the bladed rifle. Showing no signs of bleeding on his body, he covered his exposed face with his hand. "Bloody hell, that was one of my favorite helmets. And here someone goes destroying it."

Adam whipped out his handcannon and aimed at the Hunter. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blow your head to kingdom come, Combatant 30."

Excalibur only chuckled at his threat. "You just don't seem to get it at all, do you? If there's one thing I can't stand for completely, it's a hardheaded girl thinking she should take on the bull when she knows that her limits have a price on her." Slowly standing up, he kept his hand over his shattered Celestial Nighthawk. "Then again, none of you know who Combatant 30 really is. Then again, there is a justified reason for it," Excalibur reached for his helmet's release locks, the locks hissing air and falling apart completely. "You want to know what that reason is?"

Lightning was taken aback when she heard the British accent from Combatant 30 and was instantly replaced by another. One that was eerily familiar. "And that reason is…"

Adam snarls angrily, a fist clenched and his grip on his FWC handcannon tighter than before. _There's no way…!_ He saw the Ghost hovering overhead, serving as the cameras capturing the action for this Crucible match.

"I shouldn't even be fighting right in the first place. Isn't that right, Tohsaka?"

* * *

 **A/N: I deeply apologize for the almost month-long update. After being trapped in storyboard hell and the release of** ** _Rise of Iron_** **, I just couldn't find the time to finish this until the day this chapter is uploaded. Okay, I** ** _promise_** **that the next chapter will be the end of this Battle Royale and we can finally get to the rest of the** ** _Taken King_** **story.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XXII): Either that song or to me 'I May Fall' or 'Falling Towards the Sky'. Plus, I knew this would happen again. Also, whoops on Carolina in this chapter. Don't kill me *cowers***

 **Dawnartist: You know, you're one of the reasons why this chapter was released like a month after the last one. One, I have no idea if you were giving hate or criticism about the 'last few chapters' (what, since the Battle Royale or the Absolution arc started?), and secondly, that could be seen as rude. There's a point to this fanfic: to give my interpretation of the** ** _Taken King_** **story and my own mix since I do** ** _not_** **want to be copying the story bit by bit (that's boring to me).**

 **Commentary aside, until next time Guardians, and enjoy both** ** _Rise of Iron_** **and the last of Iron Banner this week! For the Iron Lords!**


	24. II-XII: Ad Lucem

**_Chapter XII: Ad Lucem (To The Light)_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

 **WARNING: THIS CHAPTER PRIMARILY CONTAINS ADULT LANGUAGE. READER DISCRETION ADVISED, SO READ AT OWN RISK!**

* * *

 _1624 Hours, December 18, 2714_

If the audience and eliminated Guardians could be heard right now, it would be in complete shock and disbelief. A cacophony of voices clearly rang out in this forsaken arena, carried out by the wind. A deathly presence lingered on in the atmosphere of the Yoyogi Gymnasium, its ruins repurposed as an arena for combat by request of Dark Knight Cloud Strife.

Lightning could barely speak. Not just from the wounds inflicted on her but also of how this Hunter that threw himself in the path of Adam's weapon knew her real name. As she leaned against the wall grasping her wounds, her HUD interfacing with her eyesight saw static over Combatant 30's ID but the color to indicate an ally changed. Her eyes widened when the ID border changed to bluish-green instead of red.

The moment the Gunslinger threw off his hood and cloak was enough to send her into either a shock or fit of scolding. Under the shattered Celestial Nighthawk as a mess of blonde hair, his armor changed in an instant like a magician and his disappearing trick.

The Hunter turned his gaze to the wounded Dark Knight, "Missed me yet?"

"No way…!" Lightning tried to get back on her feet, but she slumped against the wall. "It's you!"

"You!"

"You see, Combatant 30 never existed. He was made up. A forged identity," 'Excalibur' reached for Interitum's hilt, drawing it out before summoning another katana on his hip. "The handheld rocket launcher that wiped out Blood Gulch in one use? Followed by me using a Glaive that belonged to a Dark Knight and only his close friend kept it? A normal Guardian couldn't have access to such weapons, and seeing the look on your face Adam, I'm rather enjoying it. Priceless, even. Excalibur...is me. The one you hated so much."

"Spectre, you damned piece of—!" A shot from the Dark Knight's custom sidearm stopped Adam's insult with a shot close to his ear, the gaze Spectre gave enough to intimidate most.

"You know, I grew tired of being cooped up in the medical bay doing nothing but laying down until I got better. And when I heard from Reaper you going toe-to-toe with my family and sister for your harassment bullshit again? Oh, that was enough for me to sneak out and get even."

"But, you should be still hindered by the poison!" Gasps Lightning, and her brother lowered his sidearm.

"Not anymore, Light. I think you should thank Reaper for getting me out of the medical bay," Spectre's armor morphed once again, this time being a near replica of the Disgraced One's armor as a Dark Knight albeit with a different pattern and sharing the same black and red as his sister. Instead of having his guns in his holsters, on his back and hips underneath his cape were sword sheaths. Eight of them in total, including his Raze-Lighter. Spectre faced Adam, baring his teeth angrily. "As for you, I'm just _this_ close to killing you off for good. Ever since I got here, and now when you heard about the Dark Knights, you just wanted to exile us for framing us on things we didn't do."

"You don't intimidate me in the slightest, Spectre. According to your report created by your sister, you don't use the Darkness."

Spectre threw his head back, cackling like he lost his mind when he heard that straight from Adam's mouth. "…Well, not anymore." Dragunus appeared over his shoulders once again, roaring towards the sky. "Now that I look back at it, it was impossible to rely heavily on the Light and forsake the Darkness for someone like me. People who share Light and Darkness in their blood should be in equilibrium!"

Growling, Adam fired his handcannon at the Dark Knight until he ran empty in the magazine. A swift gold shone in Nero's eyes and drew out both katanas, slashing the rounds to dust faster than anyone could process seeing it. "You're gonna need more than that to stop me!" Without warning, Spectre dashed towards Adam, blades grinding against the ground and crimson sparks erupting from the blades. His sprinting closely resembled him evaporating into a black wraithlike mist, and his dragon familiar giving him its wings.

The blades slashed at Adam, rebounding off the plating like it was nothing. Taking his chance, Adam threw a punch at Spectre's chest and sent him back a few feet. Even though the punch was painful, Spectre shook it off. _Damn, that's some tough plating! Luckily I have the right tool for the job!_ He spun both katanas and sheathed them. But not before reaching for one across the lower of his back and drew it out with both hands.

This one was close enough to match Cloud's Buster and Fusion Swords in both size and weight, with a dull gray encompassing the massive single-edged sword and a blackened hilt. It was massive compared to Spectre's fit build, yet he's handling it like Cloud would. He vanished from his place in dark mist, reappearing behind Adam and raising the sword overhead with both hands.

Adam felt the massive sword tear through his heavy armor but not killing him. He moved away and caught Spectre by the neck, lifting him from the ground and forcing him to drop his sword. "You just made my job a lot easier by showing up. How foolish of you to fight in such a weakened state."

"You know your threats are as empty as your head. In fact, it's _you_ that's foolish to think you can defeat a Dark Knight!" Nero stabbed Adam in his collarbone with his combat knife, kicking him square in the chest and backflipping on his feet hand on the hilt of his heavy sword known to him as Armorbreaker. A pale yellow substance dripped from the knife, pooling on the ground like blood.

Snarling angrily again, the leader of Fireteam Sparta grasped his wound, his blood and the substance from Spectre's knife oozing out. In his HUD, his once charged Super was starting to rapidly lose the built-up energy, as well as his grenade and Storm Fist. "What the hell did you do?!"

"That poison there isn't the same one that was used against me. In fact, that poison was specially brewed to inhibit a Guardian's Light from further use for as long as thirty days considering the amount I put in your system."

Before he knew it, Adam had charged towards the Dark Knight like the bull he was. He lunged at Spectre, only for him to vanish in mist and appear behind him. Again, another swing of Armorbreaker took out another layer of his armor with ease and the rest of the layer fell apart. Adam threw an uppercut at him, but missed his mark when Spectre warped back a few feet from him.

The Dark Knight planted his massive sword into the ground next to him and reached for another blade perpendicular to his upper left sword and drew it out. To Shaxx, Zavala, Ikora, and the Speaker, his fourth was Trionius's sword from when he returned from the Void, unchanged in appearance for a hundred years. Again, Adam charged towards Spectre only for him to put distance between him and Adam with his father's sword. The blade ignited with Darkness, symbols along the blade coming to life as Spectre withdrew it and slashed with unprecedented speed.

 _Dammit, hold still!_ Adam couldn't keep his sights on the Dark Knight's sword no matter how hard he tries to. Blocking his body with his arms? No good. Getting a hold on the blade? Completely futile! He was just too fast with it! "Enough!" He reached out to grab the blade and firmly held on. "I'm getting sick of your sword roulette! _Make up your fucking mind!_ " He went on to smash his fist against the blade whilst in his grasp but a blinding flash of light erupted from the sword.

* * *

Back in the Hall of Guardians, Shaxx and Zavala were arguing back and forth concerning Spectre being in the Battle Royale when he shouldn't be in the first place. Amidst the argument was Ikora and Cayde watching the match not even concerned about the argument in earshot.

"Y'know, I don't know who's scarier to tick off: Lightning in her Valkyr's Super, or Spectre using all those swords with a million ways to kill you."

Ikora ignored the Hunter Vanguard's comment and looked towards the A.I, arms folded. "I suppose you knew about this, Primus."

 **"** **I suppose I do and don't,"** answered MI6 cryptically. **"When an A.I is given an order by their partner, it's absolute that they** ** _must_** **follow it to the letter myself included. Besides, I knew Spectre loved to make an entrance in his younger years."**

"Spectre fights like he knows how to use a sword here yet like us before he was revealed to be a Dark Knight. I assume you have a justification for his sudden shift in mastery of the sword."

Primus's holographic cube distorted for a split second, then returning to the Ghost shell he inhabited. **"Aside from Dark Knights being trained in the sword before anything else? It's quite simple for me to explain. The hidden abilities from Dark Knight subclasses aren't just offensive or defensive; they're also supportive and enhancers to a Dark Knight's greatest strength."**

"Whoa whoa whoa, is that why Dark Knights are unstoppable to us Guardians? Because of those four qualities of hidden abilities as one?" Cayde questioned.

 **"** **Not really. The type of the hidden ability varies from subclass to subclass. For example, Leon's hidden ability as an Ash subclass lets him deal lingering damage with any blade he uses; Cloud's ability from his Rhino subclass lets him create an immobilizing shockwave after falling from a great height; Aqua's hidden ability from the Trinity subclass lets her heal and revive everyone faster than any Guardian reviving anyone using a Crest of Alpha Lupi or Light Beyond Nemesis; Lightning's creates a shockwave upon being knocked down and recover from her knock down faster due to her dual subclasses…"**

"And Spectre's?"

 **"** **His hidden ability synergizes well with his subclass. Spectre's enhances his reflexes, strength in his attacks, and reaction time whenever he uses a sword for combat. That and his discipline with the sword makes him almost unmatched and near impossible to beat."**

Ikora cupped her chin in her hand, taking in the information the Dark Knight counterpart of a Guardian's Ghost gave. "A Dark Knight subclass that synergizes with such an enhancing ability?"

 **"** **Unbelievably, Spectre's dragon familiar isn't the only thing that's rare among the Dark Knights,"** Primus looked at the two Vanguards listening to him, then back at the match. **"His subclass…is an Excalibur: a nearly extinct subclass where an Excalibur embodies both the Tenno code and Trionus's teachings of being a true Dark Knight while being bound to honor and mastery of the sword."**

"How rare is Spectre's subclass?"

 **"** **At this point in time? Only two Excaliburs are alive according to my knowledge: Spectre and his adoptive father slash mentor slash disciple of his father's, Teshin."**

"Teshin?!"

* * *

Once more, Spectre attacked Adam relentlessly with his blinding-fast speed with Path to the Light, slicing up the rubber suit of the Titan's armor faster than anything Adam faced before! The blade didn't cut through his skin, as it wasn't Spectre's intention. Even when he stabs forward, it was more like a Cabal Interceptor plowing against Adam's body rather than a blade! Punch left, disappear. Jab right, disappeared. It was seriously getting to Adam's nerves like a pesky bug that just doesn't know when to get away from him!

 _You're fast… But not fast enough!_ Adam roared angrily once more and finally punched Spectre in his face, sending the Dark Knight flying into the wall and dropping his father's Dark Knight sword. A cloud of dust enveloped him upon impact, sealing him from the sight of everyone else watching whether it be in person or through a monitor. Out of the corner of his shattered visor, Adam saw the rest of Lightning's team coming in through an entrance followed by calls towards Lightning and the former ordering them to stand down. Leon and Cloud complied, but Aqua ran up and carried Lightning away to tend to her wounds.

"To think you were just so pissed off everyone compares you to a bull in that state… Ha!" The dust cloud that swallowed Spectre was blown away, revealing the awakened Dark Knight still retaining his spectral wings and helmet self-regenerating the damage it took. "It's true after all. You really did use everything up! You had your eight, and now I'll have my eighty!"

"What are you talking about, you little shit?!" In response, Spectre threw a helmet in Adam's direction, rolling on the snow until it settled against his boot. Once the Titan looked at the helmet, Spectre gave a rather disturbing yet smug grin.

"I thought we should, how shall I say this? 'Even the odds' a bit? South shot my sister in your fight, and now Reaper brought North down."

 _"How?!"_

Spectre retrieved Path to the Light and sheathed it, along with Armorbreaker. "Simple, really. When you and South's backs were turned during the, oh I don't know, _radio silence_?"

 _"That's it! I'll rip you apart limb for limb, you fuck!"_ Once more, Adam roared and brought out a copy of his Brute Shot and unleashed a salvo of rockets at the Dark Knight.

 _Dragunus, you ready for this?_

 ** _You do realize the consequences of expending a use from the Maledictus Anima from our union as master and familiar? Once a use has been expended, the Maledictus Anima within you will weaken in strength until it starts feeding on your soul, Light, and Darkness._**

 _As if I'd use it all in one go. I'm smarter than to expend a Level Ten on just this son of a bitch. Dragunus, activate Maledictus Anima ability Level Three!_ Spectre's helmet retreated into his neckguard like it was melting from heavy amounts of acid rather than a mechanical form and extended an arm towards the white and brown Titan.

 ** _…_** ** _Very well then. Releasing Maledictus Anima restrictions to Level Three until target has been rendered defeated._** As soon as Dragunus unlocked the ability, an aura of golden white and pitch black light enveloped the Dark Knight just the same as Lightning's Hysteria Super from her Valkyr subclass. Even his cold steel blue eyes had shifted back into gold, violent than it ever was before.

The rockets were mere inches away from blowing his arm off and himself as a whole, but an invisible shield had reflected all the rockets fired at him and sent them flying into the ceiling. _"I am the pinnacle of the Dark Knights and Tenno, and my heart the soul of a dragon's…"_

* * *

The same vein-like markings from Lightning when she unleashed her Super now appeared on his face, but with the Light breaking through the veins like light erupting from the cracks. From their standing, the _kazoku_ watched on as the aura around him burned like a fire from the sun, raging out of control.

"What is he doing?!"

"He can't! He hasn't used it for years now and the last time was an accident!" cried out Lightning. She ran towards her brother, but Cloud held a firm grip on her shoulder.

 _"Deki masen. Sotto shite oku, Tohsaka_ Don't. Let him be, Tohsaka."

"I am _not_ going to let him use Maledictus Anima as he pleases!"

 _"Kareha leberu san de shiyou shite i masu. Anata no otoutoha, karega naniwo shitte i masu._ He's using a Level Three. Your brother knows what he's doing." Counters Cloud, his gaze setting Lightning at ease.

"I just hope you're right…"

* * *

 _"Try as I may, but never have I fallen from my honor as the son of Trionus Pendragon and emerged from many battles with my honor intact,"_

Adam kept on firing more rockets from his Brute Shot, hoping to break through the barrier that Spectre had conjured. Even if he tried, there was no way to break through. Once he ran out of shots, he swapped over to his rocket launcher and fired another salvo of rockets, once again hitting the invisible shield and detonating cluster bombs. Spectre winced and held his extended arm with his hand, holding it in position and concentrating.

 _"Never have my wings been let free, nor has my pride as a Pendragon been recognized by everyone around me. Even so, I will remain in my domain forging blades upon a babel of fire. My soul is made of blades forged from the flames of the phoenix-dragon!"_

At long last, the aura that took Spectre in its wings erupted, a multitude of energy blades born from Light and Darkness replicating both Interitum and Path to the Light in a neverending supply. Many of them made themselves resemble an angel and demon's wings replacing his spectral draconic wings once they hovered over his back and the rest like a halo of sorts circling around him. Even the shadows around him and the arena started to shift and pool towards the Dark Knight, materializing into tendrils once more yet under his full command.

"You're finished, Adam of Sparta!" A 'gust' from his wings sent a storm of blades towards Adam, sailing in brilliant light and dark mist. Adam defended himself, but it was all futile. The blades struck him in his elbows, kneecaps, ankles and wrists and pinned him to the wall like he was being crucified. Try as he may to free himself in spite of the pain, one move resulted in one of the ethereal swords impaling itself near his flesh. One by one, the swords of Light and Darkness outlined his body in a blinding frenzy, drawing blood for the ones that got too close.

Adam reached for the sword of golden white Light impaled in his hand. Instead of Light, it shifted to Darkness burning his hand with the cursed power. Struggling to be free, Adam squirmed all he could in his trap. A tightness wrapped around his legs and arms, binding him to the wall and realizing it was his tendrils. More of the blades were stabbed in his chest, pinning him down and causing massive internal damage. Adam snarled like the enraged animal he was at Spectre, his wounds clearly inhibiting his ability to speak.

"What was that? I couldn't hear you over the sound of you drowning in your blood," mocked Spectre, cupping an ear tauntingly. "Eye for an eye, Adam. You shot Cloud in the throat on one of our missions twelve years ago, remember that?"

Adam spat at Spectre's face with his blood, "So what? You were trash to begin with." He hissed painfully when the Dark Knight before him stabbed him in the lung with Raze-Lighter, thumb on the switch to enable the Solar flames. The customized sidearm that Reaper borrowed from Spectre was pressed against Adam's throat, followed by more impalements from his never ending supply of ethereal swords to the chest.

"Did you think we'd forget you after what you did? I didn't, Lightning didn't, and Cloud didn't! You may change your looks but you can't hide what you did!" Spectre pressed the barrel further. "Checkmate."

Spectre unloaded the Handcannon-caliber rounds at Adam's throat faster than he ever shot the weapon before, his anger getting the better of him. But his beliefs stopped his anger from fully consuming him. Yes, he would keep his word. An eye for an eye, this was why he was doing this. He won't stop until Adam suffers the same as Cloud did. Maybe a little more than he should.

A clicking emerged from the custom Lex Prime sidearm built by his late fiancée, telling him what he doesn't want to hear. Even so, the massive pool of blood on both the sidearm and his hand was enough to snap him to his senses. Weakly but surely, Adam growled angrily at the Dark Knight his blood seeping from his mouth. He tried to speak but instead of words there was only growls.

Spectre walked away from the pinned Titan, wings starting to dissipate. "Hopefully you learned your lesson the hard way. And the lesson?" He held out his hand, fingers curled and ready to snap. "A bull like you shouldn't fuck with a Pendragon and their family." He snapped his fingers, and an explosion erupted where Adam was crucified by the Dark Knight. _Cloud… That was for you. You can put your vendetta to rest now._

 _"_ _Fireteam Sparta has been eliminated by Spectre and the Dark Knights. Congratulations Dark Knights, you have proven yourselves to be different from the generation before you. This victory goes to you!"_ Shaxx announced, the banner of the Dark Knights falling across the HUDs and monitors.

As much as the _kazoku_ didn't feel victory on their part, they raised their weapons and proved their victory. Even Reaper raised her Night Predator bow and felt satisfied.

On the other hand, Spectre drew out Path to the Light and stared at one of the two swords his father left for him. The mist of Darkness shrouded his hand, not harmful at the least until he spun it in his hand and planted the sword in the ground before him, resting his hands on the pommel. His tendrils melted away, as did the blackened veins on his face. He took a deep breath and and closed his eyes, savoring his victory within. _I'm on the way. Soon, what my father did to the Guardians will be undone. That, I will continue to swear._

"For my father… And the Pendragon name…"

* * *

It was freezing as hell, as it did every time a Guardian lands here.

Out in the arctic-cold darkness lies a sky scattered with many diamonds in the sky bright as a distant sun. Dark, cold, yet mesmerizing. Even if it was freezing to the bone without armor to regulate body temperature, the sky above was worth lazing about under the stars.

The makeshift camp situated in a cave was barely lit by a small fire, the embers crackling as it tried its best to give warmth. Even if a large fire was lit, it could be seen from a distance and bring much unwanted attention from the Fallen or worse, the Hive. That was the last thing the occupants of the camp needed. They already have their own agenda and the surface of the Moon to worry about.

A dog-like creature lay next to the warmth of the campfire, wagging its tail in content despite the scarce heat. It bore armor to make it resemble some kind of mechanical hound, protecting its vital areas from the cold of the Moon. The dog stretched from its slumber and stared out into the starry sky before howling like a wolf. A howl of loneliness. So far, it didn't care about being seen or found by the enemy. Its howl alone would paralyze them in fear. When silence followed its howl, the creature howled again and again. Once it realized that there would be nothing responding, it whined and put its head down on its paws.

That was until a shadow loomed over the canine. Perking its ears and the shadow's scent filling its nostrils, it barked happily and leapt into the shadow's arms. A gauntleted hand stroking against its head and it looked up to its master's face.

"Sorry boy, doing recon isn't an easy task," the Heir apologized, followed by the canine licking their helmeted face. "Okay, okay! Down boy! I forgot how much you miss Him. Don't worry, I'll make sure we see him again." They laughed, pushing their companion away and sat against the cavern wall. They placed their weapon against the wall next to them, the fire and the stars revealing the weapon to be of a frame similar to the Jade Rabbit scout rifle, colored red, black, and silvery-gray.

Yawning and stretching their arms, the Heir stared out into the cosmos above them their companion's head resting on their lap and stroking their head. "Soon… We'll see him again. I know it. Just wait until then, buddy."

The canine let out a content growl and fell back to sleep, the Heir still stroking its head affectionately and gazing out into the stars. Within time, the Heir too fell victim to sleep.

 _I'll see you again… I promise…_

* * *

 **Me: Finally! We're done with the Battle Royale!**

 **Prophet: And now we can get on to the rest of the story! Although something seems like we've been through a timeskip…**

 **Me: One of the problems I find with very few missions to work with in** ** _The Taken King_** **expansion: only six missions?! Christ, we're chronologically halfway through…**

 **Prophet: So, what now?**

 **Me: We haven't touched on the Heir and the Stalker, so guess it's time for a filler!**

 **Prophet: Okay then. And** ** _please_** **tell me after that filler we'll be back on track.**

 **Me: You do realize that one half of the filler actually connects back to Samson, AKA The Right Hand?**

 **Prophet: Oh yeah, I forgot about that guy.**

 **Me: Well, let's get on with it!**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XI): Thankfully that time distortion device doesn't exist in-game otherwise it'd be a pain in the ass! And thanks for the feedback on the fight scene.**

 **Mordred Render (I-XII, II-I, II-V, II-XI): Overall, I forgive you for what you initially said in the Arc I finale. Yes, the Battle Royale is like the Hunger Games (I just so happened to have read** ** _The Hunger Games_** **as I was writing II-V), and I know how it feels to be lulled into something and then the unexpected happens! I don't like doing that kind of thing, but why not try it for once? Hopefully, you understood the story behind the Dark Knights so that I don't have to go in-depth with the thing (this class is fan-made and inspired by the Warframes from** ** _Warframe_** **, so don't expect too much) but Dark Knights as a whole have the ability to disguise themselves as a Guardian and replicate any class's armor and subclass. Titans FTW in my opinion! (P.S Thanks for the comment!)**

 **Thank you for your patience, everyone! I'll see you in the next chapter!**


	25. Thanksgiving Special: One to Remember

**_Thanksgiving Special: One to Remember_**

 ** _Pre-_** **Destiny: Skyfall**

 **NOTE: AT THIS POINT (AND POSSIBLE FUTURE SPECIALS), SPECTRE IS KNOWN EITHER AS 'NERO' OR 'SPARDA'.**

* * *

 _2107 Hours, November 24, 2702_

 _Exilus Animas Academy, Red Veil Territory, -OMITTED- Location (Earth)_

"C'mon guys, what'll it be? I don't think the Masters will be happy _if_ they find out what we're doing!"

"Leon, you know better what I'd want." Sparda said, sitting at the couch lounging about for a little break.

"Leo, if you'll be a dear little brother, get me and my man some vodka martini. You know the difference, right?" Vesper snuggled against her boyfriend, his arm across his shoulders after the two spent time in the kitchen preparing for the _kazoku_ 's little Thanksgiving party.

The ninja of the team drooped his shoulders defeatedly. "Seriously? _Seriously?_ One shaken with one thin slice of lemon and one stirred with an olive? How do you think I can keep track of that?"

"Do you need me to write it down for you?" Sparda snapped half-assed.

"Who're you, my boss?"

"Now now, Leo." Vesper tutted, wagging her finger. She smiled when her younger brother facepalmed at her action.

"Alright, fine. Two vodka martinis coming up."

The couple watched as he disappeared into the kitchen, the doors sealing shut behind him as he joined the rest of the _kazoku_ in the kitchen. Now the two of them can have a moment alone.

"Do you think he'll actually get it through, Spar?" She asked, sighing against his chest as she snuggled.

"Just watch as he switches it and gives us the opposite of what we asked. Should we give him an earful if he does?"

Vesper snickered at the idea and brought the brim of her cowgirl-like hat down; something she really loved to do since she got a new helmet for her subclass. Her previous one was the standard-issue helmet, which challenged her subclass to fight blindfolded. Well, more or less obscuring one eye and letting the other barely be able to see anything. She loved a challenge. Maybe it was pure luck that she got her subclass assignment. But eventually she grew out of the helmet. "Not too much of one, babe."

"For once, I agree with you. Besides, we saw what happened when he got too careless." He traced a finger diagonally across his nose, mimicking Leon's scar. "Then again it wasn't his fault."

"And for that, I _won't_ forgive you." Vesper threw her nose in the air, 'pouting' at the comment and crossing her arms.

Sparda smirked, knowing how she isn't one to hold a grudge for long, and brushed a lock of her raven black hair away from her neck. "Come on, Ves," he breathed, making her breath hitch and shiver. "You know that was an accident. I wouldn't hurt your brother to the degree that I would leave a serious scar."

She shifted her gaze from the ceiling to the table rapidly, sighing and giving in to her boyfriend's words. "Then again, you two made amends and swore that you would use practice swords next time you would duel."

"Only because _you_ made us make amends." Sparda chuckled, pulling her in close and made them look eye to eye. He tilted her hat's brim high enough that it aligned with her forehead. "You know, I don't know if me giving you that hat made you addicted to it or in love with it. If one of the things I said is true, then I find you wearing your glasses when you build guns cuter."

"You know I'm far-sighted, so I need those glasses to do my gunsmithing. That and I only have eyes for you, Spar." Vesper batted her eyelashes at him, making her soulmate laugh and pushed down the brim to cover her eyes like it was a lever. "Though if you want, I'll wear my glasses with the hat you gave me."

"You know, the more you keep doing that the more I think you're younger than me rather than being the same age as me."

"I only act like this when I love my boyfriend so much."

Sparda hummed. "I'll take your offer into consideration." He leaned in and kissed her, hand sneakily going against the back of her head and tilting the hat upward before stroking her hair. Vesper's eyes fluttered shut and she moaned contently, her hands raking through his blonde locks.

 _"Sore ha, o ni nin wo mi te taku nai desu._ I do not need to see that, you two." Cloud grumbled, his speech still raspy like he was Death incarnate. Both the leader and gunsmith-mercenary-morale booster pulled away, glaring at the brawn of the team. Vesper was ready to pull out her custom Vasto Prime revolver to shoot at his feet but Sparda put a hand on hers.

"If you have a problem with me and Vesper having our moments, then…"

"Why don't you make a move on Lightning?" She finished.

Cloud scoffed at the statement and put the food in his hands on the table. _"Kyoumi nai ne._ Not interested."

"You do realize I'm within earshot, right?" Lightning appeared from the kitchen, bringing in her own plate she made from the kitchen for the occasion. She set it down next to where Cloud put his and shot a glance at the couple. "I swear, you two are a handful when we're not in the battlefield…"

"Sorry I'm late!" Aqua came in through the door, a portable cooler in her hands and she kicked the door shut. "The mess hall was getting suspicious when I asked for some beverages so I had to make up an excuse that I was going to use some for my experiments."

"So much for being renowned for your mastery in Elemental-wielding." Lightning grumbled. "I thought your reputation would give people a reason to listen to you."

"Don't make it sound like I'm some evil sorceress, Light," Aqua glanced at her. "Or else I _may_ sabotage the food you cooked."

Vesper got up and stretched, throwing her arms across the shoulders of both the Nova and Trinity Dark Knights. "You know, I think it's time for you to stop before I go gunslinger on you in the next rumble match we have."

"As if!" Lightning and Aqua chuckled in unison, taking their gunsmith by the arms and reversed what she did.

"If you ask me, me using Molecular Prime─"

"And combining it with my Energy Vampire…" Aqua added, poking at Vesper's nose playfully.

"I'm done for, I get it! But then again, you're both done for if Sparda uses his Exalted Blade!" Vesper counters.

"It's like you can't fend off on your own without your Excalibur, Mesa." Lightning joked. "A gunslinger and a swordsmaster in love… A recipe for pandemonium, if you ask me."

"Oh, please. I took out an entire squadron of Perrin Sequence chumps with my Peacemakers faster than you could even say 'it's high noon.'"

Sparda coughed into his hand, successfully preventing the girls of the _kazoku_ from actually getting into a fight at this time of night. He stood next to Cloud, arms crossed once he got their attention. "Well then, ladies," he started, glancing over at the Rhino-user and then at another side of the quarters where their familiars were enjoying themselves and ignoring the chatter coming from their masters. "I don't mean to interrupt your little playful quarrel. Truly. But we should celebrate."

"Not just yet. We're missing one last person." The rest of the _kazoku_ turned their attention towards the kitchen. An instant later, they heard pots and pans clattering followed by a string of curses in rapid succession like an auto rifle with an insane rate of fire.

"Argh, son of a─! Dammit!" Leon busted through the door, hopping on one foot and keeping the vodka martinis in both hands. "I swear, this is the _last time_ that I prepare vodka martini on Thanksgiving for you lovebirds!" He held out the two glasses. "Left one is shaken, right is stirred. Obviously my left and right."

Vesper and Sparda thanked Leon for the drinks, taking a sip to confirm it was truly their drinks. They looked at each other and nodded, setting them down on the table.

"Okay, everyone's here. Let's get to it."

Leon and Cloud got out some glasses and pulled out some low alcohol wine, each member of the _kazoku_ taking their turns filling their glass. Some candles were placed on the table, Aqua lighting the wicks with her Elemental-wielding. They gathered around the table, watching the tamed flames illuminate the food spread out. Their familiars soon appeared on their shoulders, ready to join in on the celebration.

"Here goes nothing." Sparda raised his glass. Everyone else followed suit, starting with Lightning, Vesper, Leon, Aqua, and Cloud. Some of the candles were lit with a different color than the normal flames. And there was a good reason for it. One was gray, another faded yellow, and others in crimson red, gold, and cyan to name a few.

"Here is to the ones that we hold dear to our hearts. Ones that will never fade from our memories, for they are with us this Thanksgiving in spirit," he continued, raising it a little higher. "To Hayden, my best friend and Nera, a good partner I could ask for."

"To Trionus and Lotus Pendragon, my loving parents that inspired my brother and I to right the wrongs left behind from the Tenno-Dark Knight War." Lightning added beside him.

"To my mother, Alexandrea Bond, who gave me and my brother life and protected us to her last breath from the Conclave's enemies." Vesper faintly smiled, and Leon nodded in agreement with his sister.

"For my mother and father, who died in their exploration to unravel the secrets of Elemental-wielding for Red Veil and their daughter." Aqua added.

 _"…Seikatsuto mokutekiwo atae te kure ta watashino ryoushin ni._ …To my parents, who gave me life and a purpose." Cloud finishes.

A moment of silence passed in the room, the candles with different colors burning until they had extinguished. Once the flames were extinguished, the familiars perched on their shoulders gave a cry commemorating their masters' parents and friends.

"Guys, I cannot be grateful enough to stand among not just friends, but family. A family that had grown and supported each other since our childhood. You guys are the best." Sparda smiled, looking at the table with his friends. No, his _family_. "Everyone, cheers!"

"Cheers!"

 _"Kanpai!_ Cheers!"

* * *

 **A/N: I thought I could do something for Thanksgiving this year for** ** _Destiny: Skyfall_** **, so here you guys are! It may not be an official chapter (that will remain in this fanfic permanently), but eh why the hell not! I'll see you guys next time (which could be sooner than you think)!**


	26. II-XIII: Filling in The Void

**_Chapter XIII: Filling In The Void_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _The following day…_

For the Traveler's sake, even if I was out of the medical bay do I _have_ to run through the physical and shooting tests? They already saw what I did in the Battle Royale, so what the hell? Then again, Zavala had to make sure that I was still fit for duty _especially_ after all that torture I went through. Now I know what Lightning felt when she was captured and experimented on…

As I stood in the Speaker's observatory, I looked out towards the open world and the City below. I remember the first time I've been introduced to the Speaker after I was 'resurrected' by Primus, and how I've been fighting the Darkness ever since. Both my Dark Knight heritage and the enemies of the Traveler. My hands held onto the railing. Already was I feeling nervous and the tension was killing me. I haven't felt this way since I had to report to either the Cyphers or my adoptive father back when I was still in Red Veil. I suppose my acts have exiled me and the _kazoku_ from Red Veil. We haven't reported in for at least three weeks now.

And you know what? I don't even give a damn whether we're exiled or not. As long as we don't kill each other, it's fine by me.

I hope Teshin will be okay with this… Then again, knowing him would result with an earful if I stuck around even if he knew that I wanted to be here.

"We hope you understand how grateful we are, Pendragon," The Speaker looked up from the reports of my tests and put a hand on my shoulder. "Not just of your deeds in the past two years, but also of showing how a generation can change from the last."

"Sir, I well accept your gratitude towards me and my team. But not all us Dark Knights see Guardians as our brethren. _I_ never considered Guardians as our backstabbing brothers in arms,"

"A fact that you reinforced when you were among us."

A small smile formed on my face, looking at my engagement ring from Vesper on my finger. "I… I just don't know now. Whether or not I should be on active duty or recuperating. I fought when I shouldn't have." But then again, I did it to protect my sister from herself and her tendency to make poor, life-threatening decisions when my life is on the line. Cheers for an almost telepathic link between siblings. "But whatever the reports on my tests say, I will agree to whatever is said no questions asked."

"Spectre, you know I am not one to lie. So I will be honest with you right now," I held my breath as the Speaker looked at me, hand still on my shoulder. "Your physical tests mark you fit for duty. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for your psychological evaluation. We thought you were psychologically fit for duty from the start, but you were hiding a deep pain and scars."

Damn, guess he ratted me out. I thought I was so good at hiding it, but I guess they were smarter than I thought. The psychological evaluators, not the Speaker himself.

I tightened my grip on the railing. "You must've thought we Dark Knights were stable compared to you Guardians. I'm not the only one with a psych that was slipping away. You heard from Primus that Lightning was tortured and experimented on to the point that she had to be sedated whenever her hysteria or rage gets the better of her."

"Yes, I have read the case file."

"Let me ask you this, sir," I let go of the railing and face the Speaker in his masked face, "Do you feel sympathy for someone that has been through a hell of their mistakes? Someone who had grown up not knowing their father because he died the same day they were born, and then their mother passing away from a fatal illness when they were only a little child?"

"I did not know you had been through such tragedies." The Speaker calmly spoke.

"What about the cruel and unforgiving training since they were kids to become Dark Knights? And then killing their best friend because their superiors suspected that friend of going AWOL years since they started the training?!" I yelled. "And then… And then…!"

"And then came the killing of someone you cherished deep in your heart," I looked up at the Speaker, his mask giving me an expressionless look yet one of sympathy. "I noticed that ring on your finger. You loved someone so dearly that you were about to be married."

"Why would you care?! You weren't there when I killed her! You don't know what it's like to reluctantly kill your fiancée over being ordered to by your superiors!"

The Speaker put up a hand in peace. "Calm, Spectre. True I may not have been there, but I have seen many tragedies to know what it is like."

"…But you're right. I… I trust you enough for those words," I had to recompose myself and breathe. "I kept that to myself as reconciliation for my mistakes. I'd rather have a curse to bear with me for my mistakes." I held up my hand bearing the engagement ring, letting the Speaker look at it. "There's no use to change what the Vanguard and the Consensus think about me returning to field work, is there?"

"I did not say that you are to be permanently stationed here due to your actions. There is a loophole in the majority decision from the two parties. I am allowed to override the vote should the parties be divided in the matter," I looked up at the Speaker once again, hopeful yet afraid of being stuck here. "Your combat discipline and strategic methods are vital to us is just as equal as your heritage as the result of a Tenno and Dark Knight union. On the grounds that your actions are my responsibility, I can allow you to return to the battlefront."

I took a deep breath and looked at the remnants of the scar Samson left me. "Before I make my decision, what happened during my hospitalization?"

"While you were hospitalized, and both your Fireteam and Dark Knight Fireteam were on standby, Fireteam Capital infiltrated the resting place of Crota's crystal and took a shard of the crystal as per request of Eris."

"And I assume the Hive didn't take to it kindly and ambushed them with both Taken and Hive." I predicted. Well, I wouldn't call it a prediction and more of an out of body experience. Wherever the Taken or Hive were en masse during my coma, I saw what was going on. Another perk of being the son of Trionus Pendragon that awakened his Dark Knight heritage. "They took James but I can't tell if he's still alive or Taken. He's still in this plane of existence."

"The spawn of the Disgraced One, carrying the ability to see into the Darkness of the Hive," I whipped around to see Eris standing at the bottom of the stairs, her eerie blindfold glowing with the Hive's green. She made her way up the stairs menacingly, yet of no hostile intentions. "You have been touched by the sorcery of Oryx as well. Yet, the Darkness a Dark Knight carries has molded it onto itself and absorbed such a curse."

I clenched my marked fist and glared at Eris. "What are you talking about?"

"Samson has marked you as one of the Taken. His equal. As long as he is alive, one way or many, you and your team are in grave danger. Both from his minions…and you yourself, should you not adhere to your path."

Now I was pissed off. That bastard marked me as a high priority target for the Taken?! No wonder something made me not feel like myself at times!

 _Dragunus, what the hell did you do?_

 ** _I merely devoured the Taken that Samson had during our conflict with him._** Dragunus said emotionlessly, but I knew the full story.

 _You just couldn't resist adding more power, could you?!_

 ** _Whatever do you mean, Sparda?_**

 _Don't give me that bullshit! Why'd you absorb the Taken membrane when you saw what it could do to Guardians!?_ I swear, it's making me look like I'm having an argument with myself…

 ** _Did you really think I would let such power go to waste? That kind of power could be beneficial to us._**

 _Damn you and your hunger for power…_ I blocked further communication between me and my familiar. I want to purge the Taken membrane from him, but then again he'd just hold onto it like a child refusing to let go of a toy.

"And if I want it ridden of?"

Eris looks at me with her signature ominous look. "You must kill Samson and his minions if you are to stand against the Taken King. Only by besting Samson and his minions will your mark be lifted," she looms closer and my heart beats faster in near fright. "Do not think I will allow a Dark Knight with a Hive curse to run rampant. I will keep an eye on you, Pendragon. To make sure you do not repeat the mistake your father made."

With that said and done, Eris left to return to her post my heartbeats starting to slow down as Eris's invisible grip on my heart was gone. Breathing a sigh of relief, I jammed my hand bearing my dead fiancée's engagement ring in my jacket's pocket.

"Is there anything else I need to be informed of, sir?"

"Yes. Triton has informed me that Samson has been broken, demoted from his position as Taken General. He has subjects known as the Influenced but Fireteam Dragon has the Influenced under control alongside their own problems. They are doing their part, and now it is time for you and your team to take action against the Taken King. However, it is your decision whether to return to the front lines to lead or to take command from your post in the Hall of Guardians."

I knew my answer before I could ever make the choice.

"There is a storm coming, sir. In time, it will not be just the Taken we will worry about. I can feel it. And the Guardians will not know what to do when they face the storm when it arrives. So, I will return to the battlefront. In due time, I will train the Guardians to stand against the storm. But for now let us focus on the Taken."

If I could see the Speaker's face, I would see him with a warm smile at my words. "Spoken just like your father. Very well then… Nero Pendragon, it is my privilege to deem you worthy to return to the fight. Lead with honor, and be cautious."

I felt pride return to me like it was my life returning to my body. I saluted the Speaker, the memories of when I had to salute either the Cyphers or Teshin before leaving my debriefings returning. "Sir, I will not let you down. I swear it."

"I know you will never let us down. You are a Pendragon; known to keep promises and fighting for the right cause. Good luck, Pendragon, for your admirable courage and honor has given us hope once more. Wield your Light and Darkness well, Guardian of Equilibrium."

I nodded and broke from my salute, trudging down the stairway as the Darkness formulated around me and formed into my armor. It's time. No turning back now.

I made my choice.

 _ **-Destiny: Skyfall-**_

"So you're allowed back? _¡Gracias al Viajero!_ Thank the Traveler!" I hear Rez exclaim when I told both the _kazoku_ and my Fireteam in the Traveler's Walk. "Finally, _esé_! Now we're talking! Nero Bianco's ready to kick some Taken ass again!"

"Don't celebrate yet, Rez. On the condition that the Speaker takes responsibility for whatever happens that doesn't fit with the mission, I'm allowed back." I faintly chuckle.

" _¡Ningun problema!_ No problem! We're here to back you up! Me, Silver, your fam, and even the _pinche perr_ —!" Rez was interrupted by both Silver shocking him in the back of his neck and Reaper stomping him on the foot with her heeled boots, both clearly pissed off. Well more Reaper than Silver. He must get a kick from seeing a girl beat up Rez… "What did I dooooo?!"

"Say I'm a bitch. _Yatte miro yo!_ I dare you!" I hear Reaper say, taken slightly aback by her sudden shift in personality. More so her Japanese than her personality shift.

 _"Riapaa-san, juubun desu._ Reaper, that's enough _."_ Cloud places a hand on her shoulder to stop her from causing more damage to the sniper of the team. Defeated, Reaper stood down and moved her heeled boot.

"Spectre, what's our course of action now?" Silver asks me, dusting his hands.

"Dragon's dealing with their own problems to clear a path for us, so we need to set out for getting through the Ascendant realm. Fireteam Capital got us a shard of Crota's crystal, but we need Crota's essence to use it as a key _without_ me and the _kazoku_ using the Darkness."

"Spectre's right. The Hive could sense us when Dark Knights use the Darkness to cloak themselves and we'd be in trouble." Aqua said, putting her hands on the table holding our strategy that both the Vanguard and us Dark Knights will use to assault the Dreadnaught. "We may need an alternate method to get what we need from the Hive."

"Suggesting using stealth drives again? There's nowhere else to get one. And besides, we _know_ what happened to the last one." Silver stared at the Nightstalker.

"Hey! Not my fault the damn thing broke! It was old to begin with!"

Leon scoffed unamused and lifted himself off the wall. "I might have an idea where to find another stealth drive."

I looked at him. "Planning to go back home, Leon? Might want to prepare yourself for a cold reception if you do."

"Who said I was gonna head back home? I'm headed back to my newly acquired stash." The door leading to our temporary base of operations in the Traveler's Walk opened, Leon taking his leave with my authorization.

I turn to Aqua to which we share a look of concern regarding Vesper's little brother. "Aqua, go with Leon to keep an eye on him. I have a feeling he's gonna do something both reckless and stupid."

"I'm on it." Her helmet formulated in a water-esque fashion from her neckguard and solidified, arming herself with her Stormfall rapier and Castanas electrical throwing charges and making her way towards the door.

"Watch yourself out there, and may the Darkness guide you to the Light."

"I'll keep you posted on our search, Spectre."

As soon as Aqua left, the rest of us kept our focus on the reports coming in. The fact that they're not looking good isn't helping us, me specifically. I wanted to punch the table from these reports showing how terrible things are, but I can't afford them to know that I've been marked by Samson. So, I restrained myself from doing it. Lightning saw the look of restraint in me and threw a look of concern my direction. I mouthed 'I'm okay' to her and she nodded. Out the corner of my eye, I saw Reaper leave for the door and when she saw me, she gave me a gesture to talk in private.

Sighing, I excused myself from the reports to check on the Ancient Vanguard and how they're doing and they acknowledged that. I don't know how long that excuse will last for them, but I need to check on Reaper. She's a part of this now and I have to be there for her. Just as I did with Vesper.

* * *

I slipped into her quarters and silently shut the door, walking in to see her sprawled out on the couch like a teenage girl in her casual wear. I smirk at her behavior and made my presence known to her. She's not Vesper, but I somehow find this very cute of her. My armor dematerialized back to my casual wear and I didn't bother to remove my engagement ring. Besides, its dragon etching in comparison to Vesper's rose etching might make her think its not what it really is.

"What's wrong?" I hear Reaper squeak in surprise upon hearing me.

"I just can't get over the fact I fell in love with a Dark Knight. And that you felt the same way for me, a Huntress who has a tendency to leave on short notice," She responds muffled due to face being buried in a pillow. "Funny how love works between a Guardian and their Darkness-wielding counterpart, especially if they disguised themselves as a Guardian first. I just don't feel okay with this. I feel tainted."

"C'mon Reap, my parents were on two different sides of a war and they fell in love in due time. I don't see how different it is between us," I sat down next to her and stroked her silky hair lovingly. Memories of me and Vesper came back and I thought this was a good time to treat her just as I treated Vesper.

"How did that work, Spectre? Your parents, I mean."

"Funny thing was, my mother was supposed to assassinate my father since she was the best the Tenno could ask to get the job done during the war. Plot twist, she was trained in assassination by my father when he was still a Tenno."

"That's… a little confusing."

I gave her a mock scowl. "You're a lovable woman. You definitely got my attention the day we met, and I admit it that I was intrigued. You have a certain flair about you."

She peeks up from the pillow and then sinks back. "How old do I look? Be honest with me, Spectre."

"Physically or by Golden Age logic?"

"Either one."

I took a good look at her. Before I knew it, Reaper crawled her head up to my lap and sighed, taking my hand that was on her hair now to her cheek and nuzzling against it like she spent too long out in the freezing snow and my hand was the warmth she needs.

"That's a tough one. You're not older than me physically, and you're not a teenager. Your face shows a youth of beauty and wisdom, like you had stepped out from being a teenager and became a young adult. So physically, you're like twenty and sixty in Golden Age logic."

"And how old are you?"

"At this point? I'm seventy-three and a half. That's twenty-four and a half physically."

Reaper snaps out of it and looks at me lovingly, yet with a slightly disappointed look. "Doesn't that seem wrong to you? Some girl dating someone who's older than them?" I caress her cheek with my hand, thumb brushing against her cheek and smiling affectionately.

"I don't see anything wrong with that. As long as they're within a ten year gap difference physically, it's fine with me. What really matters between us is that we're here, together. Don't worry, Reap."

"Thank you, Spectre. _Aishiteru._ I love you."

"I love you too." We lean in to kiss. I stop when my lips brush against hers to tease her, but I didn't expect what comes next.

I felt my body be shoved down onto the couch back first. Groaning like I fell thirty stories, I look up to see Reaper looking at me lovingly and with a glint of lust in her eyes. How cheeky. She got on top of me and took the lead, kissing me with everything she has. Sneakily, my hands pulled her in deeper and her look of surprise turned to a smug one. She moaned into the kiss and I massaged her back to get more of a reaction out of her. In an unexpected turn of events, she deepened her kiss and took my face in her hands making sure I won't pull away. Not that I was going away just yet.

Even if we were kissing, my mind couldn't leave the thought of my dead fiancée. Would she be okay with what I'm doing? I'm not the cheating type, yet the circumstances that led me to where I am now makes it somehow feel right. A woman I've known and loved since childhood versus another that I knew for about a month now and quickly fell in love with. Regardless, I don't think it's time to tell Reaper I was in love with another before her. In due time I will.

"That was payback." She said after pulling away from our deep kiss.

"Oh, and whatever for?" I asked, using my Excalibur identity's English accent to add a bit of familiarity.

"For the day you finally snapped out of your hospitalization and pulled me in for our rather… _interesting_ first kiss, love." She replies in her London accent she made up. "Besides, you planted a tiny idea in my head during the Battle Royale. One that I found rather unlike me but I had to use against Rez."

"And now you're using it on me."

"Only because we're together. But don't expect anything beyond that act."

I scoffed and flipped her over, hearing her yelp as she became the one with her back against the couch. And to add more to the change, I pecked her on the lips and ran my hand against her cheek. "Who said I was thinking of that? It's better to take things slow."

"Glad we're on the same page," she traced a finger along my scar, her touch close enough to Vesper's. "If I didn't know any better, you're a regular James Bond."

"Well, I suppose there is some minor truth to that. You weren't the first to compare me to James Bond."

"Show me then."

We leaned in to share another deep kiss, and just as I feel her breath…

 **"You know, I really, _really_ hate to break the moment here, but…"**

I pull away from Reaper and growl in Primus's direction. Damn him for ruining the moment!

"Primus… Just what the hell do you think you're doing?"

 **"While you two were having your heated moment, we got trouble brewing."** Like I was an enraged Captain, Primus backed away afraid of what I'm capable of doing to him. **"Light's been trying to contact you but I didn't want to piss you off. She's getting persistent. And irritated. We both know that's not good."**

Guess I can't really blame him. I think I'll let him off the hook this time. Reaper and I looked at each other and I saw a look of disappointment in her gray orbs. She whined and pouted, giving me the puppy dog eyes as she playfully pounded her fists against my arms and I grinned.

"Maybe after the mission, babe. You coming along?"

She produced a knife from her bomber jacket and threw it in Primus's direction, the A.I most likely trembling in fear even though it passed through his holographic form. When I look down at her, she smiled sweetly. "Did you forget? I live for the thrill of the hunt. Of course I'm coming."

* * *

"It's worse than I thought. They're spreading faster and much more alarmingly. At that rate it will be hard to contain this,"

The Heir and their companion stood on a cliff overlooking the Hellmouth, the Guardian lowering a pair of binoculars from their helmet's visor. From the microphone module in the binoculars linking to their helmet's audio receptors, the Heir was able to make out the sound of something snarling and screeching. Not Hive, nor Taken or Fallen. It was something else entirely. Truthfully, it chilled them to the bone. But this was what they were hunting. To contain. They raised the binoculars again. To the entrance of the Hellmouth, the Heir found a growth spreading at an alarming rate. Hive were fleeing from the area, only for a majority of them to be dragged into the abyss from whence they came by some unknown force.

"Looks like we'll need more than a cascade bomb to get rid of this mess." They put away their binoculars and heard the dog growl in a tone ready to fight and lowered its body, tail raised. "You ready, boy? Things are about to get really messy."

The canine barked affirmatively.

 _Here goes nothing…_ The Heir put on their hood from their cloak and prepared their psuedo-Jade Rabbit, slamming in a new magazine and cocking the bolt. In the shimmer of the light from the sun, one could see the insignia of a dragon's head imprinted where the rabbit would typically be and another of both sides of the magazine, bearing a seemingly burning flower with Japanese kanji 'ローズ' forming from the 'flames' instead of a dragon's head. There were even numbers and a designation code imprinted along the barrel, the numbers like a serial number. But the Heir knew it was their mother's tendency to do this. She was good at her job after all.

They rested the custom-built scout rifle against their shoulder, index finger against the trigger and others against hidden buttons in the grip. It took them a while to master their weapon's special features, but they asked for an all in one weapon in the first place. Remembering their training and the warnings from their mother, they loosened their fingers' grip on the buttons and engaged the safety.

The Heir took a deep breath and stared out into the cosmos. More specifically Earth. _Storm's coming. Time to get ready._ "They're coming, buddy. Let's make our move and lay out the welcoming carpet."

Their canine companion barked again and they leapt off the cliff, the Heir sliding down the rocky slope like they were snowboarding as their companion leapt from rock to rock.

In the distance far from the Heir's reconnaissance point, another watched from the darkness of the moon. _So, she sent his Heir after all. A mere child? To stop_ me _? How…disappointing._ A look of death crossed their face, pulling out an impossibly sharp throwing dagger from a thigh pouch and spun it. They were ready to throw it at the Heir, but they felt like they were stopped by an unseen force. Heeding an unheard voice, they returned the throwing dagger into the pouch.

They reached for a bow strung across their back and nocked an arrow, pulling it back with everything they had and aimed towards the Hellmouth. A sinister mist enveloped the arrow and their hands, seething to the brim with Taken energy.

 _Is that all you can accomplish? Corrupting your victims with the power of the Taken? Pathetic. Prove yourself worthy of my power, my Stalker!_

Grinning evilly under the corrupted helmet, the Stalker let go of the string and let it fly. The Taken-enhanced arrow screeched like a Taken dragon until it made sound no more, vanishing into the pits of the Hellmouth and out of sight.

* * *

 **Wow guys, I can't believe this. I've done this story for a year now and the current one to focus my time on. A whole year! Imagine that much commitment, writing every day but eventually turning it into a full-fledged chapter! For the year of writing _Destiny: Skyfall_ , I thought I would do something not action-oriented and focusing on Spectre and Reaper commemorating their first meeting that eventually blossoms into a romance.**

 **Guys, I cannot thank you enough. By the time I post this on November 25 of this year, _Destiny: Skyfall_ has amassed nearly 10k reads (9,750 to be exact!), 24 followers, 20 favorites, and 37 reviews. That is _insane_! I had lower expectations given the ratios on my previous works, but you guys blew my expectations out of the water!**

 **And to commemorate this, I would like to thank my favorites and followers from November 25, 2015 to November 25, 2016:**

 **-BDozer (Follower)**

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 **-The Crimson Commando (Favorite/Follower, II-XII: There's your debriefing for Spectre there, bud. And where you have the Influenced covered, I got the Stalker covered pretty well.)**

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 **Thank you guys so much for this. And don't worry. Nero Bianco and the _kozoku_ aren't done yet! Not by a long shot! Until then, Guardians!**


	27. II-XIV: Infestation

**_Chapter XIV: Infestation_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1207 Hours, December 19, 2714_

 _Orbit of Moon, Solar System_

 **"According to the reports we've been getting en masse, there's some kind of activity going on in the Hellmouth."** Primus reported through the comms channels. Lightning's _Draught of Nectar_ , Rez's _Kondratyuk's Escape_ , Silver's _The Road Unraveled_ , Reaper's _Devil's Due BKR_ , and Spectre's new─well, more like old from his time as a Red Veil Dark Knight─ _Xiphos_ -class ship in the same color scheme as his _Fatal Vision_ were in orbit en route to the moon. It wasn't going to take long to get there, with or without the warp drive. **"The Vanguard and the Speaker wants us to investigate what's going on down there, and they're concerned it's another invasion or territorial takeover attempt just like the Cosmodrome and wherever we've been."**

"Taken?"

 **"No, it's not the Taken. Their bio signatures are irregular and they're definitely not extra dimensional. I tried pulling up as much as I could about the reports but they're permanently corrupted. Whatever it is, it's not friendly."**

 _"Since when was_ anything _we come across friendly?"_ Rez asked half-assed. _"It's not like the next thing we come across will just give us cake and balloons and say 'we come in peace.'"_

Spectre tightened his grip on the throttle and analyzed what his A.I partner managed to recover from the corrupted reports. Some of the fragments came in the form of distress calls and he ordered MI6 to play some of them.

 ** _"Outpost Delta four-one-niner to Vanguard, we're under attack by unknown assailants! They've overrun us and most of our weapons are ineffective! Send he– Arrrrrgh!"_** The distress call cut there. Spectre furrowed his brows at the sound of the distress call, listening attentively. He knew something was wrong from the one sending the distress call but something else caught his attention.

Before the transmission cut off, he heard an unworldly howl. One that chilled him down to the bone.

 _"Are the sensor grids from the outpost still functional, Alpha?"_ Silver asked his Ghost.

 **"They're still functional but we're not getting any signals. It's like something's jamming the signals from the sensor grids."**

 _An unknown enemy that is mostly immune to damage and jams signals?_ Spectre shut off his side of the comms channel and faced his A.I companion. "Primus, what do you think we're dealing with?"

 **"The same thing you're probably thinking of. Scary in a disturbing context, frightening, and something in sheer numbers to overwhelm even a six-man Fireteam."**

"If it _is_ what I think it is, Rez, Silver, and Reaper aren't ready for this. They're under equipped and have no knowledge about how to face them."

 **"And given how we don't have an all-powerful bomb that can wipe out what we think it is and leaving everything else intact, this is gonna be another long cleanup mission,"** Primus said saucily. **"When was our last cleanup mission? Twenty-one years ago, was it?"**

Pendragon gripped the throttle tighter, another surge of loathed memories surfacing. Before it could start haunting him again, he shook it off. "…Don't _ever_ bring that up. Right now we need to focus and get this cleaned up." He flipped a switch and reestablished connection with his team again. "Alright guys, here's the plan: Silver, Rez, and Cloud, I need you to stay upside, find the sensor grid and reestablish a secure connection. Try to find any survivors from the attacks during your phase on the mission. Lightning, Reaper, and I will descend into the Hellmouth and find out what the hell's going on down there. Once you guys are done with the search and reestablishing, regroup with us at the Gatehouse. If we're not there by the time you arrive, descend into the Hellmouth."

 _"Got it."_

 _"We're all over it, Spectre!"_ Rez and Silver responded.

"And Silver? No sample taking. I mean it this time." Once the squad of ships were within orbit of the Moon, Silver and Rez broke off from formation and headed for the transmat point at Archer's Line. Spectre followed them to drop off the brawn of the team, ship hovering directly over one of the many ridges and where Cloud could land. The wings of the _Xiphos_ went from horizontal to vertical, stabilizing it as it hovered. Even the auxiliary solar-powered wings opened up and provided extra stability on the hovering.

The Dark Knight with the nearly-extinct Excalibur subclass turned his head from his cockpit seat to face Cloud, who was on standby. "Cloud, if it is what we think it is, try to hold off from telling Rez and Silver what we're dealing with. Only when you deem it necessary to tell them, do it."

 _"Shiri masen._ I understand." A section of the floor opened like a trap door and Cloud leapt down instead of transmatting. From the open space, the Dark Knight saw Cloud land on his hands and feet, leaving a crater on impact and moondust scattering like a tsunami.

 _You'd think by now he'd find another way to_ not _attract attention when he lands…_ The open section of the floor sealed shut as soon as Rez and Silver were grouped with Cloud, Spectre pulling on the throttles and engaging flight mode again. His _Xiphos_ returned its wings into its horizontal positions and took off, regrouping at the Hellmouth with his side of the team.

* * *

 **"Something's wrong with this picture… You get three guesses."** Rex half-heartedly joked, glancing out into the Hellmouth with her partner and her teammates.

"Even more cracks along the surface of the moon?" Reaper cracked, preparing her Night Predator bow.

 **"Not even close, sister."**

From their standing point on a ridge, Spectre knelt down and took out a pair of binoculars, the scanner functions analyzing the situation. "Aside from the sinister atmosphere being cranked up from 'Alien insect colony' to 'deadly creepy' and 'monsters are around the bend'? Yeah, there's all kinds of wrong in this picture."

"What're you picking up on the scanners, Spectre?"

Spectre lowered the binoculars from his visor and turned his head towards his twin. "Hive signatures within the Hellmouth are dwindling. Fast. It's definitely not Taken, I'll say it now. This is something else."

"How bad can it be compared to what we fought?"

"Again, underestimating your enemies can get you killed. The last distress call said these guys are immune to most damages." Spectre said, whipping out his custom-made Lex Prime and field stripped it. Along the barrel assembly were slots for some sort of computer chip. Taking out four square-shaped computer chips from his equipment pouch, he inserted a crimson red and green chip on one side and an ice blue chip and another green chip on the other side. Once the colors of the chips blended into yellow and cyan on their respective sides, he slid back the assembled slide to the receiver and cocked the sidearm handing it over to Reaper.

"What was that about?"

"Everything has a weakness, so I modified the sidearm with elemental damage enough to rapidly corrode a Guardian's armor and give them one hell of a nasty flu."

"And this thing is deadly beyond belief! No wonder a normal Lex series sidearm is considered cheap in the Crucible: two rapid headshots and you're done! But this? You only need one!" exclaims Reaper, twirling the sidearm in her hand.

"If we Dark Knights were still among the Tower, we'd flip Shaxx a double deuce and say, 'Screw you. Our weapons, our rules!'" To exemplify his point, Spectre threw up both middle fingers and reenacted his words using a gruff impersonation. "No wonder people use Thorn or Red Death in the Crucible…"

Lightning rolled her eyes and cleared her throat. "If you're done screwing around, let's get back to the matter at hand. Are the Hive retreating or dying?"

"Is there a third answer? Because they're doing all of the above: running and getting eradicated faster than I can kill them," he put away the binoculars and knelt closer to the ridge, maintaining his balance as he did. "This isn't a natural occurrence. It's something bad."

"How do you think It found its way to the Moon?"

"Hopefully not via asteroid that crashed on the surface and some unfortunate victim came too close."

Lightning shrugged and armed herself with her Empress of the Abyss. "You never know."

"Let's go."

* * *

Cloud, Rez, and Silver arrived at the outpost where the distress signal came from, dismounting their Sparrows and arming their weapons. From the outside, the outpost seemed barely touched. There didn't seem to be anything wrong at all.

Alpha materialized and scanned the outpost, treading cautiously as he did. Once the scanning beams ceased, Alpha turned back to his partner. **"…No survivors, Silver. Whatever did this was swift and-or taking their sweet time doing Traveler knows what to their victims."**

"Doors are locked, Alpha. Can you get it open?"

 **"That's all you had to ask,"** Alpha moved over to the door and started unlocking the door, shooting out beams on the keypad to gain access. Once the light turned green, the Nightstalker and Stormcaller raised their handcannon and scout rifle.

The door opened.

And what happened next came as a huge surprise.

"What the hell?!"

A body collapsed before them, arm extended as though they were calling for help. A sickly pus-like fluid began to pool from the corpse's chest, quickly turning into a mix of sickly green and orange. Boils were scattered across the body wherever skin was exposed, ready to burst at any given moment. It twitched faintly, adding more to the horror before the trio and its last rasps for breath desperate. The face, completely unrecognizable at first glance due to its mummified appearance, was overrun with some unknown growth.

" _¿¡Qué mierda?!_ What the fuck?!" Rez exclaimed, dropping his Ace of Spades in abstract horror. "Oh Traveler, I'm gonna be sick!"

The Exo kept his aim on the corpse, the surge of disgust and sickness getting to him as well. He was an Exo, for crying out loud! "Alpha, can you scan the body?"

Hesitant, Alpha approached the unholy mess of a corpse. He inched closer, scanning the body with the time he has. **"Silver, I don't like this one bit at all. It's a Guardian, all right… Light's been completely drained. Or corrupted. I can't tell either way."**

Cloud approached the corpse and took a closer look, daring to do what Alpha and Silver didn't. With a knife, he poked at the growth on the deceased Guardian. He ruptured one of the boils and let some of the fluids run on the blade. He brought it closer to his visor. The alloy-plating reinforcing the blade's morphic structure was showing signs of corrosion. Or contamination. Once he was convinced nothing terrible could come from the corpse, he turned to the Warlock and Hunter and burned the knife to ashes in his hand. _"Anata ha ni tsu ka kore wo tetsudau tsumori desu ka?_ Are you two gonna help me with this or not?"

"Like hell I'm gonna touch that!"

 _"Sudeni sensaa guriddo wo shutokushi setsuzokuwo sai kakuritsushi masu. Watashiha gisei shano sewa wo shi masu._ Then get to the sensor grid already and reestablish the connection. I'll take care of the victims."

"By what, burning them?"

 _"Hitsuyouga ari masu. Korera no mono to douyouni risuku wo jikkou suru baai ha._ It's necessary. Unless you want to run the risk as these ones did." Cloud growled.

"Yeahhhhh, I'm going." Like the coward he sort of is, Rez tiptoed over the corpse like he came out of a cartoon and into the outpost. A smell entered his filters, and he gagged at the toxic-like aroma. "Ugh, either the Hive is worse at sanitation or we got one hell of a problem in here!"

"What the hell is–" Silver stepped in and felt his jaw hang once his optics lighted his vision in the darkness of the outpost. "Oh Traveler save us!"

With Alpha providing the two Guardians light, the sickness within them multiplied to immeasurable levels. Even the aroma made it worse.

There was growth everywhere. From the walls, to the monitors, even every little nook and cranny. It was even _alive._ Spreading like plants growing rapidly. So many spores were growing that it was sickening to watch and some already airborne. Even there were pods that were large enough to hold a person in them.

Even worse, there were things hanging from the ceiling almost like the pods, yet more disgusting to behold.

"Damn, there's not much of the sensor grid left to fix…" The aforementioned sensor grid was overrun with the growth, sparks dancing about and the monitors revealing white noise. "Think the logs before it shut down will help us, Exo extraordinaire?"

"Worth a shot." Alpha was summoned into Silver's hand as he carefully traversed past the pods. The Ghost hovered over the sensor grid, doing what he could to extract any intact logs from what could've caused this. Tempted as he was to take a sample and analyze it, he remembered the last time he did that and nearly paid the price for it. One of his hands that was above a small outgrowth on the interface retracted back to his side. "Anything, Alpha?"

The Ghost looked back at him, whirring. **"There's nothing left but fragments. Fragments that don't make sense at all without the rest of it."** Alpha went in close to one of hanging cocoons and scanned it. He stopped scanning it and remained silent until, **"This... This can't be! It's... It's a Guardian! They're dead!"**

"Okay, I want out! I want out of this!" Rez put his hand up and started backing out, until he felt metal against his back. He turned around and saw the door shut. "Hey! Lemme out!" He started banging his fists against the door like a madman.

 _"Warning, warni…ng…! Unknown…"_ The central console blared, droning until its very last.

"I don't like this…!"

"You think?" The Stormcaller argued, back-to-back with the Nightstalker. "You think Spectre and the others know about this?"

"Damn straight he does! He probably knew we'd be in this situation and wanted us to die!"

"As if! He'd never do such a thing."

 **"If you two are done arguing, I think we got bigger problems to deal with…"** Church muttered, glancing at the pods.

Rez and Silver watched as the pods started to shudder, almost as though something was ready to be born. On the other hand, the door started to be dented from the outside no doubt the Dark Knight partnered with them trying to bring it down.

"That's…disturbing on an entirely new level."

"Annnnd you just jinxed it, _esé_."

Silver scoffed, hands sparking with Arc energy. "Being trapped inside an outpost with some unknown enemy ready to make us assimilate with a locked door and a toxic fume? How could I not jinx the circumstances befalling us?"

"Where's a magic owl companion when you need one?"

"Expecting a Hoodini to save us now?"

"Anything better than a Dark Knight taking his sweet ass time getting through the door." Rez prepared one of his knives, readying his grip.

"Can't blame him if the door is reinforced plasteel." The Stormcaller commented.

"You're probably right. It was nice knowing you, _esé_."

The two had heard it, only for a split-second before they saw it─

─and before them, the pods had exploded, revealing what was within them. It had to be six or nine of them, surrounding the Nightstalker and Stormcaller dead center of the outpost. A sickly green aura surrounded the newly emerged hostiles, followed by the airborne spores surrounding them equally like moths to a flame. From what Rez and Silver could see, they were completely horrific. All of them were bipedal, backs hunched forwards to impossible levels and their bodies overrun with grotesque levels of fleshy muscles exposed and flexing. There was barely any sign of the overgrowth on them, to which had served as some form of hardened skin. Some of them had traces of both the Fallen and the Hive among them, yet those traces were heavily misconfigured and mutilated.

"Son of a," Silver breathed, unaware that he spoke as he raised his Tlaloc and fired a round at one of the monsters' head using a Dreg's own.

The biped with a mutilated Dreg's head snapped its upper torso backwards, snarling as it snapped its torso forward once again. In the darkness of the outpost, Silver saw the round he fired leave some mark. A mark where one of the remaining three eyes was shot clean to hell. Silver switched to his Susanoo and kept his finger on the trigger, ready to charge the fusion rifle. The creature bent forward and howled, its scream like a sonic blast as it brought the Guardians down on their knees. Their audio receptors were hammering against their own forms of hearing, squealing nonstop for Traveler knows how long.

Naturally, that was when the door that locked them in was torn apart, the brawn of the Dark Knights charging in with his Buster Sword and the navy blue aura surrounding him. Quickly and effortlessly, Cloud skewered them all without getting hit. The creatures' own blood splattered against the walls and ground with each massive slice the Buster Sword made, dismembering them in the process as well. For the ones who lost their legs and crawled towards Cloud, they were either crushed under his boot or incinerated to ashes with his expertise in controlling fire. The howls and screams of the incinerated monsters rang out once again, not as damaging or immobilizing as the previous howl was to Rez and Silver.

After all of the freaks were dead, Cloud channeled a fraction of his Limit Break and set off a controlled fire within the outpost the flames sparking to life. In an instant, the sparks caught fire with the growth and ignited. An inferno blazed on, the fungal-like growth becoming blackened, dead shells of what they once were supposed to be. The airborne spores caught fire as well, decimating to mere atoms and preventing further damage. Once all of the growth was harmless to his analysis, Cloud mustered up the rest of his Limit Break and spun the Buster Sword around him. A gust of wind with the force of a tornado flooded the area, flames quickly extinguished just as fast as they were summoned.

"Thank the Traveler you showed up! I thought we were gonna die in here!" Rez gasped, dusting off his Aspriet chest plate in case any of the ashes were there and tapping one side of his helmet where his ear lays.

Cloud had his back turned on the Guardians, returning his Buster Sword on his back and keeping his hand on the hilt. _"Hitsuyouna mono ga ari masu ka?_ Do you have what you need?"

 **"We got what we could out of the sensor grid logs."** Alpha said.

"Cloud, what the hell was that!?" Rez screamed, pointing towards where one of the pods was resting before it exploded. "First we have the Taken to deal with, _now this_? When are we gonna catch a break from constant show-ups of new enemies?! I'm telling you, we need the─"

 _"Warewareha sensaa gurido, Rez wo hitsuyouna ari mase n._ We don't need the sensor grid, Rez," Cloud turned his head to face the Nightstalker before turning his body, baring his teeth under his helmet. _"Watashiha wareware ga chokumenshi te iru koto wo mi te ki mashi ta._ I've seen enough to know what we're up against." He started to walk past the Stormcaller and Nightstalker and towards the busted door, ready to communicate with Spectre.

"Cloud, I need to know: what are we up against now?" Silver asked, seeing the Rhino-using Dark Knight stop dead in his tracks.

He glanced back, taking a deep breath. _"Sore ha─_ It's the─"

* * *

"Son of a bitch," Spectre cursed under his breath, Skyfall at the ready and aimed.

He and his side of the team were at the chamber where the Sword of Crota was resting, the door sealed off by Hive runes…again. But something was different. A fungal growth was spreading across its surface similar to the ones he scouted out at the rim of the Hellmouth. The signatures even match. _It_ is _what I think it is. Dammit…!_

He heard MI6 sigh. **"Again with the locks? Why is it that the Hive have more than one lock?"**

"Extra security?" Spectre joked. The A.I faced his partner.

 **"Very funny."**

As the A.I began to decode the runes again, Spectre saw shadows moving out of the corner of his vision. Lightning and Reaper were prepared, arming themselves with their Dusk Repulsor and Aegis and borrowed Lex Prime respectively. _Light and Reaper must've seen the same thing as I did…_ He groaned mentally and redirected his attention behind him.

 _I hate this… Out of all the times It could've came back, why does it have to be almost twenty-one years after the last cleanup mission?_ He reached for his main swords sheathed across his shoulders and drew them out. The one in his left hand, Duskdancer, was modeled after a traditional one-handed sword black as night with silver-gray trims and the crossguard—doubling as a hand guard—modeled after the Pendragon family crest and similar symbols to Dusk Repulsor's own running across the blackened blade. In his right, Black King, had a slightly thinner blade than Duskdancer and had an ornamented look along the section of the hilt and part of the blade connecting just as much as Gjallarhorn, but instead of a wolf it was of a sci-fi/cyberpunk look, especially with a circuitry pattern running along the flat of the blade and housing a 'central power node' on the part of the blade close to his hand.

"Looks like your suspicions were confirmed, brother." Lightning said, her sword igniting with flames as well as her shield.

"Tell me something I don't know, Light." Spectre grumbled, his irritation about the mission pushing his buttons.

The snarls were getting louder, closer. Snarls of hunger and assimilation. Behind his helmet, Spectre rolled his eyes and took a stance, reversing his grip on Black King and leaving Duskdancer alone. Where the Sword of Crota laid were pods made from the same growth he saw on the door. They moved, ready to awaken whatever was residing within it. Reaper aimed the Lex Prime at the pods, ready to take the threat on.

"Just when you thought the Taken were bad enough…"

"Just wait till you face Them." Tohsaka said to Reaper.

Spectre took a deep breath, counting to four and exhaling. "This sector is crawling with Infested, let's clean it up."

* * *

 **A/N: Double chapters, baby! Well, I tried to post this as soon as II-XIII was up, but Black Friday shopping was a bitch that I was dragged into it. Anyway, this chapter was supposed to be released on the same day of the one year milestone but it was released at 12:38 A.M PST.**

 **Anyway, good luck out there Guardians, and keep on fighting!**


	28. II-XV: Eroxs

**_Chapter XV: Eroxs_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1349 Hours, December 19, 2714_

 _Gatehouse, Hellmouth, Moon_

"Primus, hurry the hell up with the runes!"

One of the so-called 'Infested' was cleaved in half by Spectre's Duskdancer, the pus-like fluid exploding against the blade and the ground. The lower half disintegrated in crimson sparks, and the upper half survived and crawled towards him in a crazed frenzy, only for the same sword that dismembered it to be driven into its head. The three-man team stood their ground at the foot of the rune-locked door, Reaper picking off the distant Infested with the Lex Prime and the Pendragon twins hacking and slashing the ones that got too close. Lightning kept her guard up with her Aegis shield and shield bashed some of the Leapers and Runners headed at her.

 **"** **Hey! I'm working as fast as I can here, so you can at least be pati─"**

"To hell with patience right now! We're about to be overrun if you don't kick it into overdrive, dammit!" Spectre snarled at his A.I, glancing back at the holographic cube for a second before he heard the scream of one of the Leapers ready to pounce on him. He snapped his head to the sound of the scream and slashed with both swords, the relentless speed of the strikes making quick work of the freak.

Reaper fired the last round in the Lex Prime and called out for a new magazine, to whom Spectre tossed one to her and she slammed it home. "They just keep coming!" She cried out, keeping her distance from the swarm per order from her lover. Starfall was out of the question to use against them, seeing that kinetic damage didn't hurt them in the slightest.

Like the Hive, the Infested emerged from the black pool in the far reaches of the room and the doors, the multitude rapidly rising the more they kill off. Ten fall, twenty new ones took their place. A shine began to emerge from the Infested, like a shield made out of transparent light. They all stopped their advance, twitching about at the ceiling.

Lightning panted, her sword arm getting sore faster than she could even land a headshot on them. "Oh hell."

"Dammit, here come the Ancients!"

A taller Infested emerged from the sea of Walkers, appearing fleshier than their weaker counterparts and a light blue for their flesh. They moved like a scarecrow with the scarcest of muscles and bones, arms hanging at their sides. A growth made of their flesh emerged from their backs, giving it a crown-like appearance. The moment it saw the trio, it hunched over and raised an arm.

"Move!"

Lightning raised Aegis to steel herself and Spectre dived towards the Bladedancer, shoving her out of the way. The Ancient's arm wrapped itself around the Excalibur-using Dark Knight, reeling him in like a high-powered grappling gun.

"Spectre!"

He struggled around the arm wrapping around his chest, realizing it was futile and stabbed Duskdancer into the ground. The arm tightened around him as the Ancient kept tugging with the strength it has hidden within, the armor underneath the fleshy makeup starting to depress onto his skin.

"Not this time!" The symbols along the blade of Duskdancer sparked to life, growing in shades of red until it reached a bloody crimson. A burst of crimson light erupted from the blade, enveloping the faces of the Infested in spheres of bright light and blinded them. Taking his chance, Spectre reached for his combat knife and sliced the wrapped arm in one fell swoop. He rushed towards the towering Infested and raised it above him, stabbing it in its chest. As swift as the stab was, Spectre pulled Duskdancer out a spray of Infested blood painting the floor and then slicing it into oblivion across.

"Spectre, get back here!" Lightning barked.

Not in the mood for listening, Spectre wallrided his way up and leapt off above the swarm of Infested. He whipped out the Angstrum handheld rocket launcher and started charging up the weapon again, ready to annihilate them in one fell go. As soon as he heard the nine shots indicator, he pulled the trigger back and let the micro-rockets loose, carpeting the floor with explosions. The blinded Infested exploded into chunks of flesh and bones, splattering the room with the color of Infested blood. Lightning conjured up a barrier from the antimatter she could control, shielding her and Reaper from the raining massacre Spectre caused. After the wet pelting had ceased, the antimatter barrier dissipated, and standing in the middle of the bloodied room was Lightning's twin brother.

"You just had to be a showoff, did you?" Lightning asked, her brother holstering the handheld launcher and readjusting his gauntlets.

" _That_ was showing off? I'd call that 'showing just how irritated one can be if their buttons were pushed enough to do shit like that.'" Spectre retorts, throwing a thumb behind him to exemplify his point. "How many runes are done?"

 **"** **Two out of five, give or take."** MI6 answers.

"You got to be kidding me..."

"And if that wasn't bad enough, we have bigger problems than that Ancient."

A blood-curdling roar rocked the chamber, dust and loose particles showering down. The trio felt the vibrations like an earthquake rocked the place. Lightning tightened the grip on Dusk Repulsor. Spectre leapt back to the foot of the door and braced himself for what's to come.

"Juggernaut?"

"Juggernaut. That _you_ attracted by killing those Infested." Said Lightning dryly.

"So bite me. Both of us know we haven't fought Infested for a while."

* * *

"I thought the Infested were just a kid's tale to get them to behave!" Silver exclaims.

 _"_ _Sore ga mottomoii to omoi masu. Shikashi Infested juubun na mi ari taiyoukei zentai ga kansen shi te iru made, karera ha teishi shi mase n._ That's what most would say. But the Infested are real enough, and they won't stop until the entire Solar System is infected."

"So they're a hive mind, so to speak." Rez asked, and Cloud gave an affirmative glance from under his helmet.

"Why hasn't the Vanguard done anything about the Infested?"

 _"_ _Infested Ankoku Kishi, hogo sha de ha nai no mondai de ha. Kuwae te, warewareha senku shaga sorera no nini no jouhou wo shutokusuru maeni mondai no torinozoki masu._ The Infested is the problem of the Dark Knights, not the Guardians. Besides, we get rid of the problem before the Vanguard gets any information on them."

 **"** **Until now."** Alpha blatantly states.

"But, where did they come from?"

 _"_ _Watashiha shira nai gao, wareware Ankoku Kishi ha watashitachi ha sore ga toshizenkonzetsu to omotta. Ikutsu ka wo chiisana zangai ga nokotta shi, ikinokotta ne._ I don't know, but we Dark Knights thought we eradicated it years ago. Guess some tiny remnant remained and survived."

"And I assume the source of the Infested is a plague."

 _"_ _Saisho no Ankoku Kishi ha Yamini Void no tappu ni de te i ta toki hakken sa re ta pesuto. Ananta ga iki te iru ka shin de, sugu ni kansenshi te iru tame ni itte iru yoi sore ha ki ni shi mase n. Dareka, mata ha nai koto ha anzen desu. Sore ha nomi shiyou shit e kansensuru sun do i masu._ A plague that we found when the First Dark Knights were out in the Void tapping into the Darkness. It doesn't care if you're alive or dead, as soon as you're infected you're gone for good. No one or no thing is safe. It only lives to consume and infect."

"Not even Exos and Vex?" Rez questioned carelessly.

 _"_ _Nai mashin desu._ Not even machines."

Rez sat on the railing above the Dark Knight and Warlock, relaxing. "So how do we stop it? Our weapons don't work on those guys."

Cloud looked up at the Nightstalker and folded his arms, visor facing the ground. _"Dochira ka sorera wo moyasu, sakuhinni sorera wo katto mataha kasukeedo bakudanwo nyuushushi masu. Yuiitsi no houhoude ari masu._ Either burn them, cut them to pieces, or get a cascade bomb. That's the only way."

"Silver, which do you think is worse: Taken or the Infested?"

"They're just as bad as each other. One is a plague, another just a lump of goo that just grabs whatever's near to it."

"Here's to praying to the Traveler that Oryx doesn't start Taking the Infested…"

 _"_ _Iku ze._ Let's go."

* * *

Spectre felt the weight of a Fallen Skiff crashing against his back as he was thrown back into the sealed door, his cape scattered about him like it was wings. Collapsing to the floor on a knee, he clutched his still-healing collarbone protectively and looked up.

In the middle of the chamber was a deformed quadruped of an Infested, the flesh far more exposed and deformed its weaker counterparts. Growing on its back were more appendages, appearing like tendrils and its spine exposed. From what Spectre could tell, the Juggernaut was created from a deceased Fallen. He was sure it had to once been a Captain, as it was too short to be a Kell yet taller than a Vandal. The infestating disease corrupted its face, twisting it into a mess.

Another roar erupted from the behemoth, rocking the very foundations of the chamber. Lightning had deflected the sonic roar with her shield, but eventually slid next to her brother when another roar took her off guard. Reaper kept firing at the Juggernaut with the heavy caliber sidearm until it ran out, rolling away in Void mist when it lashed out at her. She nocked in a Shadowshot arrow and pulled it back, only for the Juggernaut's sonic-esque roar knocking her against the wall, pinned by pieces of its spine and dropping Night Predator. He reached for his dropped sword, but the pain coming from his shoulder forbade him.

 _Damn, I should've known better!_ Spectre picked up Duskdancer and gripped the hilt with both hands. Darkness seethed from his hands, consuming the blade whole in a mist and then turning red. _"C'mon!"_ He started swinging the sword, waves of ethereal energy racing towards the Infested much like Cloud's Blade Beams. They struck the monstrosity in an overwhelming swarm. But the beast barely bled from the barrage.

The creature's arched its back, snarling and its corrupted face splitting open like an axe chopping wood. Rows of countless jagged teeth revealed themselves, tongue drooling nastily and the saliva melting the Hive flooring beneath it. On command, his Exalted Blade Super ceased to continue as soon as he realized what was going to happen next. _Oh, shit…!_ His HUD showed him his energy meter that gauged whether or not he could use his auxiliary powers as an Excalibur subclass. It was almost depleted, undoubtedly from using his Radial Blind. Spectre couldn't use his Slash Dash or Radial Javelin.

The giant Infested pounced towards him, teeth starting to grind against one another and saliva just barely melting off a piece of his armor. Spectre tried to move out of the way, but his legs weren't responding. Like his legs were frozen. He drew out Black King and blocked with both swords and braced for the attack.

But he only heard the sound of something _fast_ flying past him. Peeking an eye open, he saw a blur run past him and the Juggernaut flying towards the wall. It was pinned against the pillar, and the dim shine of a curved blade was at its throat. The Juggernaut snarled and squirmed to break free from the blade. Instead, the blur kept it pinned and flew in all directions, the sound of a blade cutting through Infested flesh clear as daylight. Scatters of ash-like particles flew about with the blur, settling to the ground and turning red. A pained roar left its face before it was stopped abruptly, a gurgling coming from its throat. The next thing Spectre knew, the Juggernaut's head had slid off cleanly, followed by the torso of the quadruped as the limbs remained on the pillar.

Soon enough, a figured backflipped on the floor in front of the pinned Juggernaut, graceful in their maneuver and the Bladedancer standing next to them. She must've been freed by the figure, Spectre figured. They balanced a weapon with one of their hands, the curved blade's tip just barely piercing through the floor. From what he could see, the weapon was a scythe. Custom-built too, as it appeared to have been crafted skillfully and beautifully by a master weaponsmith. Spectre hasn't seen that level of smiting before!

"Quite an entrance," Spectre called out towards the figure, setting his swords on his back as Reaper ran up to him. The figure turned their heads towards Pendragon and twirled the scythe around in their one hand. As it spun flawlessly in their hands, the weapon transformed into a scout rifle and it was placed in a holster pouch behind the lower of their backs.

"Had I not been here in time, you would've been Juggernaut food." The figure responded, voice altered by a voice alternator. At this point, the two Dark Knights and Guardian saw their last minute savior. They were clad in the Titan's Winged Sun armor set and Golden Bull Mask, but the rubber suit was replaced with the Neuroghast's fieldweave and cytogel wires. Spectre saw the traces of red, black, and white being the shader, undoubtedly Feud Unfading and a Cloak of the Exile to finish it off.

"Where'd you come from?" Reaper asked.

"Have you been following us?" Lightning added.

"To be fair, I think the door will give you an answer," They pointed towards the rune sealed door which had a huge chunk of the curving door either melted or blown to smithereens. "And I was running from the same thing you were facing. So no, I didn't follow you."

Spectre walked up towards them, holding out a hand in peace. He saw the hesitation in their body language, like they had worked alone and barely got to socialize or trying to hold something back. He couldn't tell between the two. "I haven't seen you around before. I'm Spec─"

"I know who you are. And my name is not important right now," despite the comment, the hooded Titan shook his hand. They had a firm grip. Firm, but anxious. "But I can help you find the source of this Infestation. I ran into it when I was doing my sweep of the Hellmouth."

"Deformed quadruped?" Lightning inquires, arms folded and already feeling suspicious about this one. They nodded.

"So what do we call you?"

"Eroxs, for now." With that said, Eroxs nodded after taking on that identity for themselves. Yes…for now. Eroxs looked at the palm of their hand and stared at it intensely. Like something they cherished was in their hand, they closed it slowly and put their empty fist close to their heart. Their heart started to relax, not in the context of meeting an idol in person, but rather like meeting an old friend or family member after not seeing them for so long. Under their helmet, they cracked a wide smile and they opened their hand. Inside was a mere petal, followed by it transforming into a flower without its stem. It bloomed just as fast, revealing itself to be a rose swirling in black and red.

The team of three looked at each other and nodded in agreement. Spectre rolled his shoulder as the melted portion of his armor started undoing the damage from the acid saliva. With their new ally, they descended further down the Hellmouth ready to contain this Infestation.

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

Aqua was tapping her foot in semi-impatience, arms folded and back against the wall. A breeze ran through her and she shivered, running her hands up and down her arms to get warmer. She stared out into the setting sun in the Cosmodrome, sounds of metal clattering and being tossed around filling her ears. To her, it was getting irritating. _Slowly_. Like death taking its sweet time killing her. The Fallen that the pair fought on the way up here was minimal, seeing as they were focusing on surviving any Taken invasions than looting.

"Are you done yet, Leon?" Aqua asked, dodging a thrown piece of metal effortlessly and without moving from her standpoint.

"Does it look like we got what we came for yet?"

"You know, I don't think Cayde will appreciate you taking one of his stashes behind his back." Argues the healer-sorceress, using her connections to the Void and telekinetically launching the piece of junk from the dome as her fingers started conducting an invisible orchestra.

Leon peeks his head out of a pile of junk and looks towards his girlfriend, still leading the invisible orchestra. He took a deep breath and stopped what he was doing. "Look, whose side are you on anyway? Mine or Spectre's?" Aqua stopped her conducting, turning towards him.

"Leon, you have to put this hatred towards Spectre in the dirt. It's not healthy for you. You _know_ what happened to your last partner when he was consumed by anger and rage. Do you want to end up like him too?"

 _"He killed Vesper, dammit! How can I not_ put it to rest _when he's a reminder of my dead sister?!"_ Leon yelled, punching the steel beneath his feet and standing up. "And my last partner was weak! I'm not going to end up like him!"

Aqua didn't take it lightly and pushed herself off the wall, glaring at him with all the anger she could muster.

"Leon, listen to yourself! I told you that it wasn't worth bottling up your anger at him! Whose fault do you think it is anyway?!"

"Spectre's, obv─"

"Wrong!" Aqua screamed, tears starting to run down her cheeks. Sobs began to show themselves in her speech. Leon's fist started quivering, the tension he built up lessening. "It wasn't his fault, nor was it Vesper's! It was the Cyphers! Why would Spectre change his name into what it is now?! _Ask yourself, Leon!_ He never wanted this to happen, and you know as well as I do that they've been trying endlessly to tear us apart! They don't care if we're blood siblings or not; they don't want us Red Veil Dark Knights to form relationships with one another!"

Leon's anger was being quelled again, slowly but surely. Ever since his sister's death at the hands of her fiancé, he wanted to make Spectre _suffer_. Make him feel the pain he felt. But he knew he couldn't touch Lightning, since she was protective of her brother and pissing her off meant the end of his life. He became more aggressive as time passed, to the point that his kills were gruesome and brutal compared to his swift ones. Even his greatest strength started deteriorating from master assassin to average. And to add more to his list, he even tried to _kill_ Spectre during his hospitalization by cutting off the necessary machines that kept him alive. All in his quest to make him suffer. The old him─the one built from reasoning and understanding─began to surface again, fighting with his current self in a battle of morals. Of the right thing.

He looked up to see Aqua taking his fist in both of her gentle hands. Her thumbs started undoing his enclosed hand and she looked at him with hopeful aquamarine eyes as her body trembled from her sobbing. Leon gently put a hand on her cheek, thumb wiping away the tears that fell from that eye and brushing some of the stands of her short blue hair behind her ear.

"Leon, I know I'm going to say this for the millionth time but…just let it go. I don't want to lose you, both to the Darkness and at the hands of another Dark Knight that could kill you. Deep down, we both know he didn't want to do it. Spectre's the one that's holding us together after Vesper died, so please. _Please_ understand the burden he has on his shoulders just to hold the _kazoku_ together and trying to reunite the Dark Knights and Guardians. Spectre defied the Cyphers for a reason all his life, and he used the Absolution Directive as his final act of betrayal. All of us should be there to support him, not hurt him further. He needs _all_ of us."

"Even now that Reaper's a part of this?"

"Even Reaper."

Aqua was right. He didn't want to admit that she was right, damn it. Now that he had his mind cleared from the shroud of hatred, something he never wanted to do, he saw that he wasn't the same anymore. As such, he pulled her into his embrace and held her tightly as though it would be their last.

The lion will stand proud and roar once again, thanks to a wise raven helping him up after he fell.

* * *

 **A/N: Phew, got this one done in time before a storm starts coming. A storm known as…winter break. Yeah, yeah, I tend to be** ** _slightly_** **lazy around this point in time but I have a couple of specials planned and hopefully churn out another chapter before 2016 ends…yeah.**

 **THEPHANTOM50 (II-XIV): Glad to see you're still enjoying it! And good luck on that reread: hopefully by then you'll be up to speed on the story!**

 **Before I go guys, enjoy the Dawning while it lasts and maybe I'll see you in the SRL! (I'm a PS4 user, sorry for Xbox users reading this story. For PS4 users, you'll find me dressed as Spectre's Titan appearance ─Spektar Pandion Helmet, Pandion Type 0 Gauntlets, Duskrender Type 0 Chest, Dunemarchers, and Honor of Cormorant w/Old Guard Shader─) Until next time, Guardians!**


	29. II-XVI: Risking It All

**_Chapter XVI: Risking It All_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1407 Hours, December 19, 2714_

 _Circle of Bones, Hellmouth, Moon_

"So now what?"

"What we do now, is go down to the Summoning Pits and wipe out the source of this Infestation." Spectre said, pointing towards the door leading to the Summoning Pits and on a summit across from said door. Standing by his sides and behind him were the rest of his two teams, arming themselves with their weapons.

He didn't dare glance downwards, for there was an army of Infested aimlessly wandering about. Ancients were thrown in the mix as well, drifting about in the sea of the infected and protecting them with their healing presence. There was no way they could cut through them and make kill the source of the Infested in time. Even with all of them utilizing a sword or using non-kinetic damage, the Ancients are starting to send more than the healers.

Thrown in the mix were walking Infested tumors, boils packed to the brim and just disgusting to even behold, especially as said boils were ready to burst with a single touch. Tiny pods erupted from their backs, landing nearby and rapidly growing to spawn more Infested. There were even Infested that were wandering around like primates and their chests opening up, giving life to tinier Infested that started devouring the corpses of unfortunate Hive and Fallen like piranhas. Boilers and Brood Mothers. Wonderful. Now they have more of a pain up their asses.

Shortly after they met Eroxs, the rest of the team that were tasked with reestablishing connection to the sensor grid regrouped with Spectre's team excluding Leon and Aqua. They brought him the bad news that it was beyond their repair capabilities thanks to the Infested and they had encountered the Infested just as well. Rez and Silver had started using their Dark Drinker and Bolt-Caster ever since Cloud told them they were immune to kinetic damage. Their Fireteam leader prayed silently that the sword training he taught them didn't go to waste and weren't as reliant to their swords' special abilities to take out their enemies.

As usual, Lightning didn't immediately trust their cloak-wearing Titan friend and threw cold glances at them whenever she had the chance. She even whispered a conversation to her brother concerning their new friend on the way here. Spectre didn't want to admit it, but he too felt that something was off with Eroxs. Not of a malicious intent and stab all of them in the back, no no no. When they shook hands, Spectre sensed something familiar radiating from Eroxs. Familiar, yet not. Like they had met before.

"We need to hurry, or else we'll lose the Ocean of Storms to the Infested," Eroxs unfolded their arms from their chest and whipped out their scout rifle, slamming in a fresh new magazine and cocking the bolt.

"And how do you expect us to get—" Rez was stopped when Eroxs's scout rifle transformed back into a scythe. He gulped when the blade was close to his throat, then moved away by the wielder. "Why do I have to be on the cutting end of every bladed weapon?"

The only Exo of the team dropped his shoulders. "Well, I can think of a number of reasons, but I'm gonna say this one was accidental." He looked at Eroxs to which they nodded affirmatively and rested the scythe across a shoulder.

"Do we slaughter them or make a run for it, Spectre?"

"I want to go with option 'B', but seeing as half of us don't even know how to wallrun — which I can't blame them for being Guardians," Spectre started, hearing a small protest before being quickly silenced. "It looks like we have to charge in. No one uses Supers until I give the order to. Cloud, Reaper, you're going to run stalling the Infested as we make our way through them. You two have the capability for crowd control."

" _Or_ we could let Eroxs run distraction for us."

Spectre looked over his shoulder to see that the hooded Titan wasn't there. Reaper and Silver were pointing in front right before he could ask and he turned his head back around. The sound of Infested howling and a blade being swung reached the team's ears and his helmet's HUD zoomed in on the commotion. He felt his hopes sink in his heart as he saw Eroxs attract the attention of the Infested on their own. So much for the easy plan.

 _"_ _If you're done up there, that crowd control would be most appreciated!"_ Eroxs said via comms, easily taking them on with minimal effort.

"For the Traveler's sake…!" Spectre muttered, armor reverting back to his Guardian appearance and summoning the Hammer of Sol once again. "Go!" He started hurling the flaming hammers at the Infested, the rest of the team springing into action and the crowd control getting to work. After he caught a number of the Infested's attention with his Hammer of Sol, he leapt off and slammed the hammer against the ground into the swarm he caught their attention with. A flamed tsunami incinerated them within the radius, howls of agony and pain the last thing he heard of them.

As Reaper nocked in a Shadowshot and Lightningfall arrows at once and let them fly into the swarm, Cloud leapt forward from the summit like a Striker and into the swarm of infected Fallen and Hive, then stabbing the Buster Sword into the ground. Like the last time he used his Dark Knight Super, a wave of extremely volatile Arc energy and wind erupted like a tsunami as it swept the Infested off their feet and put them in a zero gravity-like environment. The Shadowshot arrow launched by the Bladedancer hit its mark and ensnared the 'free-falling' swarm in streaks of Void energy, followed by the Lightningfall arrow striking one of the Brood Mothers and chaining Arc lightning bolts between it, Boilers, and Ancient Healers along with the Void snares. In due time, they were disintegrated into oblivion.

With her Empress of the Abyss auto rifle, Tohsaka mowed down the Runners and Leapers with controlled bursts of her specialized Equilibrium rounds each enemy fallen by the bullets either vaporized, incinerated, or zapped to oblivion. Crawlers tried their best to overwhelm her and have her assimilate, only for her to stomp on them with unforgivable cruelty their blood splattering against her armored boots. She felt no remorse for the Infested, victims and plague alike. Just as Rez and Silver started slicing down Infested headed towards them, Lightning drew out Dusk Repulsor once again, followed by Reaper summoning her own Raze-Lighter as they joined the massacre.

Spectre backflipped away from where he slammed his last Hammer of Sol and changed back to his true armor, summoning a boxy, almost sci-fi light machine gun with three fixed barrels in his primary slot that started whining to warm up. It didn't take long as energy indicators all across the gun lit up and he held down the trigger. Bolts of crimson energy were fired at a slow rate, disintegrating the swarm until it started firing at the same rate as Super Good Advice effectively cutting them down to size as the bolts overpenetrated through them. He kept up the barrage until the glow in the indicators were blinking, heat cooling ports opening on the weapon to accelerate the cool down process. An indicator on his heads-up display alerted him of a cooldown malfunction. Cursing under his breath, Spectre reached for the battery pack that doubled as the front sight and main barrel housing and tossed it aside after seeing the battery's visible cells have been fried. _Dammit, now I wish I packed more of the battery packs before I left years ago!_ Although in his mind, he wished he had a flamethrower to make it easier. And to make up for a dead battery for his energy machine gun.

The cloaked Titan swung their scythe around, hacking and slashing the countless Infested with unprecedented speed and grace. They caught one if the Brood Mothers in the curved blade of the scythe, ensuring a moment of pause. It screeched in the Titan's face and started birthing more of its spawn. Scowling at its hideous face and nauseating smell, Eroxs pulled a hidden trigger on the long handle and sliced. Their attack was enhanced with a fired round from the magazine they loaded, the massive recoil easily multiplying the slice and killing the Brood Mother before it spawned its babies to kill them. Eroxs heard more Infested coming for them and spun the scythe in the air, kicking it in their direction. As their boot struck the hidden trigger the scythe-scout rifle propelled itself towards them, cleaving them cleanly in half and flying back to finish the Infested off, Eroxs catching it mid-leap and stabbing the blade into the ground. Aligning the sights to their targets, they began the repetitive process of firing and loading a new round with the bolt-action without any form of amateurish moves, killing them in rapid succession.

Just as the Fireteam of seven were back to back in a circle, weapons aimed and ready to kill off more Infested as they approached, they were not ready for what happens next. Right before the Infested inched closer, the lights in the area started to flicker.

 ** _"_** ** _You pathetic Infested! You are all useless!"_** As if on cue, the infected Fallen and Hive burst into blackened, Taken-like flames engulfing them in their individual hells. **_"I bring you back to kill them, yet you fail to! Worthless, sniveling pieces of undead!"_** Howls of agony echoed throughout the Circle of Bones as the Infested burned, their burns far more than the Solar flames and the fire that the Dark Knights have used before. Runners, Leapers, Brood Mothers, Chargers, Ancients, and Boilers alike raised whatever their heads were towards the heavens and let out more of their ear-piercing screams, the hunched bipedal Infested holding their heads.

Like they were all going to hell for their failure.

One last eruption of the flames engulfed the infected, and their agony multiplied tenfold. As much as the infected were given no sympathy for this, the Dark Knights felt some form of it yet a need of answers were among them. In due, agonizingly slow time, the Infested in the Circle of Bones incinerated to ashes. To Rez and Silver's hopes and expectations, they were glad Oryx didn't step in to Take them.

 ** _"_** ** _You… I will make you pay for the death of Crota…"_** the disembodied voice rasped. Just before the team would start asking questions, the path leading to the Summoning Pits opened. An orb of the Taken membrane manifested before Spectre, glowing and pulsating. **_"Come down to the Pits, son of Trionus Pendragon! You cannot run from your past crimes, both from the past and now. Come with your friends, and I will hunt them down until they are dead or broken!"_**

The Taken aura was lifted from the area, and the ashes of the infected were blown away into the abyss. As for the orb of Taken, it phased through the door, leaving its touch on it as it the door seemingly melted altogether. An explosion rocked the area, entrances and exits all blocked by fallen rocks and collapses architecture. All seven of the Fireteam breathed a sigh of relief and they holstered their weapons, lucky that the place didn't collapse over their heads but knowing they were trapped like rats. Everyone but Spectre, who kept Duskdancer and Black King at the ready.

Lightning put a hand on his shoulder. "Spectre, you can't seriously be thinking about going down there alone," she said. What she didn't anticipate was her younger twin pulling away from her touch like he was enraged at her. "Spectre…? What's going─?"

Lightning stopped her advance when Spectre had the tip of Duskdancer at her throat, followed by Rez and Silver aiming their weapons at their leader. As though in response to guns being pointed at him, his tendrils of Darkness manifested behind his back, writhing and twitching as though in agony. Her beating heart had skipped a beat at the initial moment he did this, but now it was beating fast out of fear. Fear that the Darkness was starting to influence him into making fatal mistakes. If only she could see his eyes to hopefully prove that fear wrong…

"Spectre, what the hell's going on?" Silver interrogated, Tlaloc's barrel sparking with Arc energy.

"Have you gone _loco_?!"

Spectre took one good look at the Guardians and Dark Knights around him, then at Reaper with a hand over her mouth clearly shocked at his actions, and finally back to his own flesh and blood. Even he felt some intimidation from Eroxs when they put the blade of their scythe close to the back of his neck. When he sensed the Titan's hand start to quiver out of some hesitation, so did he. Even with his armor on, he could see the outline of the mark Samson had printed on the back of his hand. Only he could see it. No one else. Now he knew it. Spectre concluded that Samson was behind why he couldn't move right before he was close to becoming Juggernaut food, and now this?!

 _The bastard…!_ He wanted to tell them outright about this. But then again, they would make sure he'd never return to the field and they won't know how to find the cause of all this. Only he does. Spectre could use it against him, but the influence was working against his attempts to. He was no Batman, but he could be close to one. In any case, Spectre felt as though he was only watching everything he did and had no control over his own body. He could even feel his sister's breath hitching resonate through the sword. Even sensing her fears.

After what seemed to be an eternity, Spectre lowered Duskdancer from his sister's throat but kept his hand on the hilt. In an instant, his tendrils faded away. He looked around and saw his teammates and Eroxs lower their own weapons. "…I'm going to wing this alone. The rest of you get out of here."

Lightning scowled, but her heart was sinking at her brother's tone. "Are you insane?!"

"Do I _look_ insane? I'm doing this to not lose anyone else and that includes you, sis. What do you think I'll do if all of you died in front of me?" Spectre questioned, looking at his sister dead in the eye and the distance almost enough to punch someone in the face or shoot them point blank. "I already lost people that I held dear to me, both family and friends. And so did you. I'm not going to lose more."

In the midst of it all, Cloud crossed his arms. _"Kono shi no wana, Supekutore ha shitte i masu._ You know it's a death trap, Spectre."

 _For a lone wolf, he knows how the hell grief works…_ "It's a risk I'll have to take. But that doesn't mean that I'll go down with a guilty conscience," said Spectre like it was his moment of dying. "I'll take care of myself."

 _"_ _Anata no seishin joutai de ha ari mase n ga ari masu._ Not in your mental state, you are."

"I've seen people manage to survive a trap like this with a similar mental state," said Eroxs, their scout rifle-scythe still in hand. "I'm sure he'll be okay." Lightning threw a scowl at the Titan, to which the receiver threw their hands up in surrender.

While Lightning and Eroxs were glaring at each other like dogs and cats, Reaper went up to Spectre. Instead of her reputation as the Predator, she started shaking and sniffling. As she looked to look at her lover in the eye, he took her in his arms. One of his hands found itself at the back of Reaper's helmeted head and pulled her in, allowing the Guardian to cry into his chest. Remorse flooded him in the form of memories he deeply cherished, yet a part of him clearly reminded him that time was gone.

"Do you have to do this alone?"

Spectre lifted her chin, their gazes meeting under their helmets. "I don't want to have you in the crossfire between me and whatever waits for me down there. I'm not going to run the risk of losing another loved one." A sonic boom rang throughout the Circle of Bones, followed by a powerful gust of wind. A searchlight shone down, illuminating the darkness of the area and ensuring no Hive could manifest should they appear. Reaper looked up and saw Spectre's _Xiphos_ on standby, hovering over the ledge vertically like the derelict shuttles found in the Cosmodrome and hatch open. From what she saw, there was no indication of damage to the hull of the ship.

Reaper felt the urge to question him how his ship could easily navigate through the rocky tunnels the Hive created. "Promise me you'll not do something reckless and stupid down there."

Spectre smirked and pulled her in close again, letting her hear his heartbeat through the armor. _You're just like Vesper…_ "I'll try not to. It's me, remember?" he handed her a device out of the sight of his team. She raised an eyebrow and proceeded to speak, but Spectre quickly silenced her. "Use this. Link this to your HUD and it'll relay my vitals to you so you'll know if I'm alive or dead."

The rest of the Fireteam boarded the _Xiphos_ via the hatch, Lightning and Cloud reluctant to leave him to fight this threat alone. Rez and Silver, despite the three of them as Nero Bianco having handled threats as a team, felt the same way he would. Reaper was the last to board, who turned to see her lover tread towards the melted door leading to the Summoning Pits cape fluttering about in his stride. As though he sensed it, Spectre turned around and looked at her mournful at what he'll do. He nodded and tapped the plates composing his helmet, signaling her to keep comms between them online.

And that was before his tendrils came back, bladed appendages making quick work of the rocks around him. In an instant, the rocks crumbled before the door, cutting off access to the Summoning Pits by caving him in on the other side effectively separating Spectre from the Fireteam. Truth be told, everyone didn't see that coming. The females of the team wanted to get down from the ship and snap him to his senses, only for the hatch to securely lock itself and starting its flight out of the underground necropolis.

 _Alright boy, you know what to do. Help him out._ Eroxs thought as the ship sped past the tunnels below the surface of the moon, the back of their neck sending out a signal with a tiny collar-like device. They didn't need to worry if the signal was to be intercepted ─ it was on a closed channel that only their companion could listen to. If they could hear the canine now, it would've barked or growled affirmatively.

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

Something wasn't right here. The atmosphere was different from when he fought that abomination of an Ogre. Aw, to hell with that! _Of course it was obvious_. Something about it was darker than before, more deathly and nostalgic. Nostalgic in a bad way. For some odd reason or another, the vibe this atmosphere was giving was choking him with his past. As Spectre kept a hand on one of his swords' hilts since his descent, he took the time to reconcile with MI6.

 **"** **You seriously don't know when your lies will start affecting me. They never do. What is it do you think that you're trying to accomplish by going alone to fight something we don't have a damned clue about and how to put it down?"** questioned MI6, holographic form pulsing and illuminating the darkness.

"I already said it: I don't want another friend or loved one to die. That's why I'm taking this risk."

Before he knew it, MI6 appeared in front of him and took a human form, still holographic. More specifically, Primus took Spectre's appearance as a Guardian, even matching his height. **"So you're telling me that you're going to go to war. A war that you know you could've potentially lost before you could make your move. Not just against Oryx, but against Samson."**

Spectre advanced on his A.I assuming his 'reflection'. "That son of a bitch brought the war to us. To _me._ Look at the casualties so far, Primus. Thousands of Cabal, Vex, and Fallen have been massacred by Oryx's Taken. What's next? Millions? How long will it be until Oryx starts making Taken Guardians and Dark Knights?" Spectre snarled, glaring at his own 'reflection' for the potential wise talk. "The only way to stop Oryx from making more of Taken Guardians and Dark Knights is taking out his first and only one."

 **"** **Even if it means you, son of the strongest Dark Knight that ever existed and true heir to the throne of the Dark Knight leadership, becomes Taken? You think I don't know about what's going on inside you? Don't you get it through your thick skull right now?** ** _You're giving Oryx the opportunity to Take a Dark Knight_** **,"** MI6 argued, jabbing a finger against the side of his helmet. **"I've known you since Teshin gave me to you on your twenty-first birthday, and you're going through another change. I** ** _know_** **this isn't you, and you're just letting Oryx and Samson control you as their puppet! What will you do if** ** _you_** **killed everyone you know dear to you, including Reaper?"**

The hand around Duskdancer's hilt started to envelope in Darkness and Spectre's temper increasing the moment he entered the Summoning Pits. The area was virtually empty as he remembered leaving it. But a dark presence was here. The Taken aura was faint, yet there was no Infested biosignature here. Gone. As much as he wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, he knew something more powerful than a deformed quadruped was here. _Phorid's out of the picture…good. Never liked fighting the bastard anyway._ He leapt off the level overlooking the grounds of the Summoning Pits, landing on his knees and free hand as his cape softened the fall with an inertia dampener sown into the fabric.

 ** _"_** ** _So…trying to become the big hero, aren't you, Pendragon?"_**

It was now that Spectre found out what — or rather _who_ — he was up against. It was another humanoid Taken, meditating dead center in the grounds as though they were waiting for his arrival. The armor indicated that it couldn't have been a Guardian, but what he had feared. It was composed of bone-like materials for vital pieces of the armor over a leathery-like material that had to be made from processed ferrite for the bodysuit, energy emitting from the bones forming patterns. They shared a similar color scheme as Spectre but the red was as though they bathed in the blood of humans. Even the helmet had looked twisted by corruption, an elongated, cylindrical head cage-like ornament to the helmet and slitted eyes where anyone's eyes would be behind the helmet. A long flowing cape in the same colors ran to the point where the tip would touch the floor when they were standing, leathery like it was made out of skin from either the Fallen or Cabal.

Spectre drew out Duskdancer from its sheath, the blade illuminating with the Darkness he could control and pointing the tip in their direction. His hand went for Raze-Lighter's hilt, but he wasn't ready to pull it out. "And I assume you're behind the Infestation here on the moon. Sent by Oryx to draw me out."

An echoing cackle erupted from their lips, looking up from the floor and looking at their prey. **_"There is no place to hide, son of Trionus Pendragon. You cannot run from your past!"_** they stood from their meditation, hand wrapping around the hilt of a giant sword sharing a similar material and appearance to the bony armor they wore. **_"There is no salvation for your crimes against Crota and The Right Hand. Did you really think there would be no consequences to your actions?"_**

Naturally, that prompted the Excalibur-using Dark Knight to draw out Raze-Lighter and ignite the flames along the blade. Immediately after triggering the flames, Raze-Lighter was engulfed in Solar flames that blazed out of control for the first time. Even to his own. Flames so uncontrollable that it illuminated the area around him in a violent flaming orange.

"Tell me something. Do you bleed?" Spectre asked in a menacing tone, clawed gauntlets gripping the hilts of his swords and scratching the materials composing them. No response from the Taken Dark Knight. _"You will."_

Under their helmet, the Stalker cracked a sinister smile. Their sword started to illuminate in crimson, the patterns projected throughout the sword glowing brighter and the Taken aura seething through its surface.

 ** _"Your legend dies here, Pendragon. You shall not leave this place alive!"_**

* * *

 **A/N: And so it begins. The stalker versus the stalked, predator versus the prey. Both the Heir and Stalker are ready to play their roles here, and will Spectre find absolution? (Props to whoever catches the reference Spectre says to the Stalker and his conversation with MI6/Primus.)**

 **Prophet: Why does it feel like you're touching on deep topics to make the reader think? Subtle, yet fairly easy to pick up on.**

 **Me: Deep topics that make one think about life intrigue me, and I wanted to try executing them in stories.**

 **Prophet: Fair enough.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XV): Huh. I never thought of the Infested to be similar to the infected from The Last of Us, although the Infested are an enemy faction from Warframe. I really need to brush that game off my shelf… Who knows about Eroxs? You'd probably be shocked when their gender is revealed.**

 **Guest (Cl0ud, II-II): Two things first of all. One: learn how to spell 'cliché' right, and two: read** ** _Dragons' Destiny_** **for those characters that aren't from** ** _Destiny: Skyfall_** **. (I assume you didn't bother to read** ** _Dragons' Destiny_** **when I** ** _clearly_** **said it was a joint story. Then again, you probably won't get this far to see this response to your review.)**

 **Two separate Guests (II-V and II-VI): I'm going to say this now, this is** ** _my_** **take on the** ** _Taken King_** **story and I want to emphasize on my characters and their journeys rather than what revolves around the Destiny universe. Meaning, although they are in the Destiny universe and other concepts/games like Warframe, Halo, and dragons are thrown in the mix, I just didn't feel satisfied with the lore Destiny offered during Year 2 and its prior year so I want to develop my characters to somewhat be unique from the Guardians we play as and play with. Develop them and show their own struggles.**

 **Okay, so this is somewhat of an early Christmas present from me to you guys! There will be two specials coming in the next couple of days (one for Christmas and another for New Year's), but this is officially the last chapter for 2016! As soon as 2017 rolls in, there will possibly be a chapter ready for deployment. Until then, Guardians and enjoy these last few days of the year!**


	30. Christmas Special: Dawn of a New World

**_Christmas Special: Dawn of a New World_**

 **AU-** ** _Destiny: Skyfall_** **(bears no connection to the timeline in the story and this is purely a family moment)**

 **NOTE: LIKE THE LAST SPECIAL, SPECTRE IS KNOWN AS 'NERO' OR 'SPARDA'.**

* * *

 _1927 Hours, December 25, 2724_

 _Pendragon Residence, Red Veil Territory, -OMITTED- Location (Earth)_

 _"Daddy!"_ wailed a little girl, cupping her hands over her mouth as she stepped into a room looking for someone.

Her emerald eyes full of curiosity and innocence fluttered around the room scarcely decorated with swords and bladed weapons on the walls and helmets on shelves from what she was told were 'legends to him, both his friends and family.' One of the helmets looked very old that somehow survived the test of time for thousands of years, another so scary that she dared not to look at it, and then one that she saw frequently whenever that someone came home. That was until she found what she was looking for. On the desk close to the door was a form taking a nap, lightly snoring over some paperwork of sorts and head resting on his arms. "Daddy, mommy's waiting! It's Christmas, and Auntie Light and Uncle Leon are coming!" she tried nudging her father awake with her tiny hands, but to no avail.

She pouted and poked her father in his cheek. Nothing. Again, she shook her father's arm to the same result. Then, an idea sparked in her head. Looking up towards the shelves and towards one of the helmets that was barely collecting dust, she tip-toed over some scattered papers that were important to him. Careful not to crumple them under her feet the child tried to climb up on a drawer, using the handles as steps for her hands and feet. In due time, she was with eye level with one of the helmets on the shelves. Her father's helmet. Scratches weathered this black and red helmet that looked fairly new and fresh from the forge, the smooth swept-back visor pulsing with light like a scanner and ridges along the jaw like vents for breathing. Two horn-like ornaments decorated the sides of the piece of armor, giving a dragon-esque appearance both cool and intimidating. But it didn't scare her like the other one. Keeping her balance on the surface of the drawer, she reached for the helmet. As soon as she lifted it from the shelf, she expected it to be very heavy based on its appearance but it was surprisingly heavy enough to hold with one hand.

 _Wow, daddy's stuff is so cool!_ Her thumbs ran across the surface of the helmet's visor, the light reacting to her touch and creating a new pattern to go around the fingers. She giggled at the mesmerizing light as it changed from red to blue, and then a gray color. At first, she wanted to put it on but then what would her daddy say? Frowning at the thought of him being mad at her, she kept it in her hands. A small shape that was hidden on the shelf caught her eyes and she reached for it. _Oh no!_ The moment she reached for the small shape, she had let go of the helmet in one hand and being the child she is she had clearly underestimated its weight. A small yelp left her lungs and she lost her balance on the drawer.

But she felt the warmth of arms catch her before she hurt herself, dropping the helmet against the carpet. Peeking an eye open, she saw who stopped her from falling.

"Honestly Rose, if you wanted to wake me up the best thing you could do is dump a bucket of water on me or get Neo to bark or howl in my ears." Sparda smiled softly, cradling her like she was still a newborn instead of being a physically four-year old child. By the Traveler, how the years flew by since she was born… She was truly a blessing from the Traveler. To him and Vesper.

Rose grinned innocently. "You're awake, daddy!"

"What were you doing with my helmet, Rose Alexandrea Pendragon?" he saw her smile turn into a frown and her eyes looking down on the floor. Realizing what she was looking at, he picked it up and put the helmet in front of her. She took it and hugged it like it was a stuffed animal, hiding her face.

"I'm sorry daddy. I thought I could wake you up with this on…" Rose anticipated her daddy to be angry at her. Instead, she felt his hand run through her brown hair and ruffle it up a bit.

"It's okay. Next time, try to be more careful with yourself," he put her down on the floor, straightening her dress and setting the helmet on his desk. She still didn't look at him and he gently turned her head to face him. He gave a warm smile. "Look Rose, that helmet can take the damage. You can't. And believe me, you're much more precious to protect than my own armor. Cheer up, you said it was Christmas, right?"

Rose felt that sadness lift from her soul and looked at her father in his steely blue eyes. Taking her father's words, she cracked a smile and nodded eagerly. "Come on! Mommy's waiting downstairs!"

"There's no need to come downstairs anymore, Rose."

Rose's eyes widened and ran straight for the door, where someone was leaning on the frame of the door. "Mommy!"

"Merry Christmas, my princess!" Vesper laughed as her daughter leapt into her arms and spun around. After that, Vesper nuzzled her nose with her daughter's before she faced Sparda. "I see you're awake, honey. Had a nice nap?"

"It was better than spending an entire night and morning doing paperwork for the treaties between the other factions and not spending time with my beautiful wife and daughter," Sparda teased. "You know the job of being leader of the Dark Knights and undoing the Cyphers' deeds takes the life out of me."

Vesper frowned slightly and took her daughter in her arms. She saw Rose try to suck on her thumb and wagged her finger, tutting at the same time. Rose pouted before her mommy gave her a freshly baked cookie and happily scarfed it down. "You know you have Lightning to help, right? You're both Pendragons."

"Sadly, she's still hunting down the remnants of the Cyphers for their crimes. She just doesn't have the time to play politics and treaties _and_ be there to babysit Rose when we're out. Besides, her trying to remedy the relations between Red Veil and Perrin Sequence isn't her strong type."

"And the Tower?"

Sparda looked over at his desk for the paperwork. "We're getting there. There's just a few issues we need to have a compromise for," Before he knew it, Vesper shushed him with a finger and the two looked lovingly in the eyes. "Although one day of not doing treaties and compromises can't hurt, right?"

"Well, you more or less have about five hours to enjoy Christmas. After all, you did take a nap for the entire afternoon."

"Yeah! And we opened our presents without you, daddy!"

Sparda raised an eyebrow. "What's that I hear?" he approached his daughter and took her in his hands. "You opened your presents without your daddy?" he grinned devilishly and started tickling his daughter. "Did you?"

Rose's laughter was music to their ears while she was trying to resist her father's tickles. "N-no, daddy! Stop! We didn't!" in the midst of the moment, Vesper tried to hold back her laughter but it was futile and she burst out giggling.

"Well, Rose was a _little_ impatient and she opened one of her presents. Behind my back, even!"

Sparda stopped tickling Rose and lifted her into his eye level. "Which one did you open, Rose?"

"Are you mad at me, daddy?"

"No." It was then that Sparda noticed something different about his daughter. He felt something soft, like cotton or silk. One good look at her and he saw it. Rose was wearing a black scarf that was red on the inside but it was too big for her. "Isn't that scarf a little too big for you, Rose?

She shook her head. "It's not a scarf, daddy!" she fumbled around with the scarf and let it fall. By the Traveler, it was big for her! "It's a cloak, daddy!"

"A cloak, huh? Who gave it to you?"

"I did." Vesper spoke up, who started to redo the cloak into its scarf-like form albeit more comfortable for her daughter than it was. "I thought it would help when she would play out in the snow. I guess I made it a little too big."

"At least you get something for effort," Nero joked and he saw Vesper stick her tongue out at him. "At least it's not too big."

She went up to her husband and kissed him on the cheek. "That's better."

He smiled. "Well in that case, you forgot something from me," he walked over to the shelf where his helmet once rested and reached for something. "Merry Christmas, Rose. I got something for you from my travels to the City. Sorry I didn't have the time to wrap it."

Rose's eyes widened when he presented it to her. She took it in her hands and looked closer. It was red like her namesake with a slight tinge of pinkish-orange, but she couldn't hold it in one hand. A black ball was in the middle of her present and she touched it with her finger. The gift shuddered on contact and the center of the ball lit up, a turquoise glow revealed in dead center of the ball. Rose gasped happily and it hovered before her, whirring and scanning her.

"A Ghost!" she heard about them from her daddy, how they were the counterparts of the Animas Crystals and A.I the Dark Knights use to help them fight. "Thank you daddy!" she hugged her father, Ghost hovering in front of her. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Sparda chuckled and hugged his daughter before setting her down on his chair. "Take good care of it, okay? Since it's yours now, you can name it." He saw Rose put her hands together and the Ghost hovered over her cupped hands like a Mote of Light or snow globe.

Rose brightened with joy and looked at her new Ghost, which had tilted slightly to the side in curiosity. It was like a spark of familiarity came between her and the Ghost, one like they were siblings or knew each other. "Hikari. I'll name you Hikari!"

* * *

 **Merry Christmas, everyone! I apologize if this came later than expected, but I hope you enjoyed this short family moment! See you in the next special!**


	31. New Year's Sp: The Dawn of a New Year

**_New Year's Special: The Dawn of a New Year_**

 **AU- _Destiny: Skyfall_ (Same timeline as the Christmas Special)**

 **NOTE: AGAIN, SPECTRE IS KNOWN AS 'NERO' OR 'SPARDA'.**

* * *

 _2347 Hours, December 31, 2724_

 _Pendragon Residence, Red Veil Territory, -OMITTED- Location (Earth)_

"I can't believe you talked me into staying, brother."

"Light, give your hunt for the Cyphers a break for one day. We're undoing their tyranny and what we're doing is what we wanted for a long time." Sparda said, staring out into the blackened sky where dots have scattered the sky. But tonight, there were fireworks starting to explode in the sky. Patterns of many colors spread out in the sky, preparing the rest of the Dark Knights and Guardians among them for the New Year.

"But─"

"Come on, Auntie! _Pleease_?" Rose begged, sitting on her auntie's lap and resorting to wrapping herself in her cloak to stop her shivering as well as leaning her head on her shoulder. "I missed you! Why can't you stay with us for a while?"

Lightning looked down at her niece, her emerald eyes practically looking similar to a certain mutt's puppy dog eyes. Smiling faintly, she ran a hand over Rose's hair and under the hood of the cloak. She was careful to mind her feet, since her brother's dog was sleeping at her feet. _Damn mutt, sleeping on my boots… At least Hayate has the decency to sleep at my side or lap without snoring._ Lightning rolled her eyes, remembering why she preferred cats over dogs.

"You really did miss me that much, huh Rose?"

Rose nodded eagerly. "You never come home lately! I wanted to have fun with you!"

"I…I have work to finish. Serious work, Rose," Lightning said. "Besides, you have Neo to play with."

"Light, I think that's enough. Besides, who else practically begged you to stay for New Year's?" Sparda chuckled, taking his daughter in his hands and letting her sit on his shoulders. "I don't want to beg again, but please. Do you want what happened to us to happen to Rose? With mom and dad?"

Lightning looked down at her hands, contemplating on should she repeat it again or actually give it a rest and let the rest of the _kazoku_ handle her mission. For years, she had brushed away the offer for help no matter what it was. That was excluding the times the rest of the _kazoku_ had insisted on it. "…No. I don't want to repeat history."

Neo started to stir, the light snoring coming to an end. The dog stretched and yawned before staring up at its owner, sitting on its hind legs and panting. It barked, wagging its tail for some attention.

The leader of the Dark Knights knelt down and started patting Neo's head. "Hey bud, had a nice nap?" His companion for many years barked. At the same time, Rose's Ghost had come close with the canine, scanning it curiously before inching away with a commanding bark.

Rose pointed a finger at Neo, Hikari returning over her shoulder like it was scared. "Bad boy! You scared Hikari!" Neo whined, giving the puppy eyes at the little girl.

The door leading to the balcony of the residence slid open, and in came Vesper with a tray of hot cocoa to counteract the cold. "Did I miss anything?"

"Mommy!"

Lightning stood from the balcony couch and helped her sister in law with the tray, setting it down next to the bench. "Been a while, huh Vesper?"

"Please, it was only six days since we saw each other. And that was on Christmas." Vesper said, folding her arms and grinning. "I swear, it's like you and Cloud are off doing something we're not aware of! Can't you spare some time with us as well?"

Tohsaka only scoffed at the comment. But Vesper saw better as a faint red was on her face. "You must be too up in your marriage to think that Cloud and I─"

"Oh, c'mon Light. You're starting to act like him. I mean, it's not like someone you loved dearly passed away from this world anymore," Vesper said, playfully imitating her sister-in-law. "Cheer up! The New Year's gonna be here soon!"

"But, I─"

"Ah ah ah. None of the 'brooding' here, Lightning. Besides, you might make Rose cry with that kind of behavior."

She had given up. There was no way that she would talk her out of it otherwise with her change in the past twelve years. Lightning shrugged. "Even after being married and having a daughter in the past twelve years, you're still the same Vesper we all knew and loved."

"There's no way I'll change! Not in a million years!"

In the midst of it all, the little girl giggled at the small 'argument' between her mommy and auntie. Hikari cocked its shell sideways and looked up to its partner's father. Her tiny hands reached for a cup on the table and her daddy reached one for her. She thanked him and started blowing down on the hot cocoa. "Cloak not enough to keep you warm tonight?" Rose nodded.

"It's cold, daddy." Smiling, Sparda set her down on the couch and sat down next to her. Rose looked down on the cup and frowned if it was too hot for her. He reassured her it was safe for her to drink and she took a sip. She watched as her father took a cup and hold it with both hands. "Daddy?"

"Yes Rose?"

"Why do you fight with Auntie?"

Sparda was slightly taken aback at this question asked to him by his young daughter. He looked down at his cup and sipped from it. He assumed she picked up on how he and Lightning talk every time she comes home. From hunting the remnants of the Cyphers. "Rose, your Auntie and I don't fight. We just…have some disagreements."

"Why, daddy? Is it because she doesn't come home a lot?"

Sparda wanted to say 'yes', but this was a little girl he was talking to. _His_ little girl. "It's because of how she wanted to get back at the people that hurt her. In here," he pointed at both his heart and head. "Those bad people also hurt me. Even your uncles, Aunt Aqua, and your mommy. So, those years of being under their rule caused us to loathe them. And eventually, we overthrew them."

"And you became king!"

Sparda chuckled at his daughter using the word 'king' to describe his place in power now. "Well, I guess you could say that," he looked out into the skies, where the fireworks were starting to increase in frequency. _Guess it'll be time soon._ "Do you know what our last name means, Rose?"

Rose shook her head. "What does it mean, daddy?"

"In some old language, Pendragon means 'head dragon.' Your grandfather chose that name for us all."

"So do we have an actual dragon's head in the house?" Rose asked, shakily taking another sip. "That's gross. And scary."

"No, Rose. 'Head dragon' means that we are leaders, like the leaders of the pack. A pack of dragons or wolves. So, I guess that makes us kings and queens as you'd put it."

Rose's eyes lit up happily. "Is that why we have a dragon for the family symbol?!" she pointed at her daddy's jacket, where the family crest was sewn onto the sleeve clear to see.

"Funnily enough, yes. I didn't question it, not even once." Sparda looked around the balcony for Neo, only to find him gone. _Must've gone down to the front lawn or backyard. Always did have a habit of wandering off to some part of the house to avoid the commotion… Hopefully he and Hayate don't run into each other again. The last thing I need is another torn up couch or carpet from their scuffle._

Rose had finished the last of the hot cocoa and set the cup aside. "Daddy, what do you wish for?"

Sparda looked down at his daughter and smiled warmly. "It's already happening, Rose. Ever since I took my rightful place as leader of the Dark Knights," he said, bringing his daughter close to him and watching the fireworks with her. "I wish for the Dark Knights and Guardians to come as one once again. Just as it was over a hundred years ago."

It was then that Vesper and Lightning sat down on the couch alongside the two generations of the Pendragon name, exhausted from their 'argument'. Vesper picked up her daughter and set her on her lap, turning back the cloak into a scarf. Rose hugged her mother and snuggled up to her. "Mommy?"

"Rose, I already have what I wished for. Your father, you, and peace at last amongst us all. But I wish this peace will last forever, and this family." With that said, Sparda simply smiled and rested his head against his wife's, taking her hand into his. "And you, Rose?"

Rose had clutched at her cloak-turned-scarf and looked at her Ghost, the turquoise light as though in agreement with what she will say. She looked over at her aunt, who smiled at her and knew what she would say.

"All I want this New Year is for everyone to be happy," Rose stared up towards the sky, illuminating with countless fireworks. "And no one fighting."

Even as the three adults knew what she would say, the next generation Pendragon gave them a feeling of warmth. Vesper hugged her daughter back as the Pendragon twins smiled and ran a hand through her hair.

"Mommy…daddy…auntie…" she murmured, yawning and embracing them as best she could.

"That's my little rose," Sparda whispered softly. He looked at his watch. 12:03 AM. "Happy New Year, Rose."

Rose nodded softly, Vesper's eyes filling with tears of joy before they closed.

"Happy New Year…daddy…"

* * *

 **Happy belated New Year, Guardians! I hope you had a fantastic New Year and I'll see you guys in II-XVII!**


	32. II-XVII: Skyfall

**_Chapter XVII: Skyfall_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1617 hours, December 19, 2714_

 _The Summoning Pits, Hellmouth, Moon_

The shrill shriek of swords clanging against each other rang out in the Summoning Pits, clashes like sonic screams and cuts left in the rock. A greatsword made from bones of sorts swung wildly yet sure to hit its mark, clashing against two smaller blades designed to render flesh as quickly and painlessly as possible.

Spectre deflected a number of the Stalker's sword swings with Duskdancer and Raze-Lighter, but not completely. Those swings were powerful that he couldn't block them with one sword! In the midst of the last block, the greatsword bounced off the blades and the Stalker staggered. A split second gave him an opening to strike back, and he took that chance. He stabbed the Stalker with Duskdancer.

But he immediately regretted it. As the Stalker gave a low laugh, they stared him down and a hand wrapped around his neck. Spectre was lifted off the ground and just a head above the Stalker. He started to choke as their grip tightened, wearily swinging Raze-Lighter to let him go. Instead, his flaming sword hit the gauntlet of the Stalker who disarmed him and tossed the sword aside.

 ** _"_** ** _My turn."_** Just in an instant, Spectre was flung to one of the pillars around the Pits with a godly force, shattering it and bringing it down on him. Looking at the sword impaled in them, the Stalker ripped it out. Taken blood spilled from the wound, the Stalker in no clear sign of pain as they wiped it clean and tossed it aside next to Duskdancer.

Spectre emerged from the rubble, grasping a side and leaning on the remains of the pillar. He slipped, back sliding against the remains and breathing heavily. A pain shot through his shoulder and Primus began to stabilize it almost immediately after the HUD detected it. _Damn, not again!_ A hand was at his shoulder, bleeding slightly but the pain just as evident. Hopefully, the bones that had just healed two days ago didn't break again. _This keeps up, and I'll surely need a damned plate for it!_

 ** _"_** **This** ** _is supposed to be the heir to Trionus Pendragon? Come on, get up! Fight me!"_** The Stalker appeared before him, sword at his throat. They made no such move and started punching him. With each punch they delivered, the faster his Spinmetal-dipped iron plates started being dented. Not even the Argon Crystal lining ─ which was supposed to be both the rarest and near-indestructable material the Dark Knights found in the Solar System ─ could repair the damage done.

Even as there seemed to be no opening to counter whatsoever, Spectre took the upper hand and kicked the Stalker back from him. His breath, labored and pained, was starting to return to normal. Reaching for his sheaths on his back and detaching the magnetic locks, he tossed them aside. In a favor done silently, Primus transmatted the discarded swords back to the _Xiphos_. Only Duskdancer and Raze-Lighter were left. An instant after Primus transmatted it, Spectre rushed before the Stalker and started delivering punches back at the Stalker. He wasn't as strong with his fists as most Titans, but he hoped that his training from Teshin would make up for it. One went to their chestplate, another to the face, and the third one─

─hit nothing, as the Stalker evaded it and grabbed the fist. Spectre threw his other fist aimed at their helmet, but the Stalker caught it just as equally. He growled painfully as he felt his fists being crushed like they were being compacted. The next thing he knew, the Stalker smashed their helmet against his own with a force powerful enough to confuse him for a moment. Quickly shaking it off, Spectre was hit by multiple punches to his kidney and thrown to the ground.

It was then a shadow leapt out of the darkness of the Summoning Pits and attacked the Stalker. It bit their arm with deep fangs, easily puncturing their armor and sinking its teeth in. Spectre looked up and saw an armored canine attacking them, growling and sinking its teeth in further. The Stalker cried out in pain and caught the being by its neck, releasing its fangs from their arm and then flung it aside. He watched helplessly as the canine hit the pillar, whining in pain before being knocked out.

"No!" Spectre's tendrils of Darkness returned to his side, grabbing the Stalker by the arms and legs and flinging the Taken Dark Knight across the pit. He reached for his swords and they came flying back into his hands. Afterwards, Spectre's tendrils picked up the canine and moved it somewhere safe from the fight. In his head, he could hear screams and hissing coming from his tendrils, the bladed appendages showing again. They were his to command, and his sword and shield. The scent of the canine was oddly familiar to him, as the tendrils picked it up. Hence their screams and hissing. But he didn't have time for it right now!

"Is that all?"

 ** _"_** ** _I'm just getting started!"_** The Stalker yelled.

Spectre blocked a surprise attack with Duskdancer and Raze-Lighter once more, going around and striking in the back. Again, his swords appeared like it barely did anything to them. Before he was grabbed again, he warped back in dark mist and sheathed his swords. He ducked before he was about to be decapitated by the greatsword and tripped up the Stalker. Right before the Taken Dark Knight hit the ground, Spectre spun them around and bent their arm behind their back disarming them.

"Who are you?!"

 ** _"_** ** _Don't you get it, Pendragon? I am your past mistakes incarnate!"_** A burst of energy sent Spectre flying into the air and the Stalker retrieved their sword.

Right before Spectre hit another pillar, his armor reverted to his Titan armor. His gauntlet's grapnel launcher fired a line at the pillar across from him and a second line at the one he'd hit. Like he was a gymnast, he caught hold of the cable turned tightrope just as his launcher detached and flung himself up, balancing his weight on the cable and high above the Stalker. Spectre breathed heavily, hand on the handle of Raze-Lighter and staring the Stalker down.

" _My_ past mistakes? You don't know a damned thing about me!"

The Stalker's gaze met Pendragon's. **_"You rejected the Darkness before. Now, you accepted it. You were never one to accept it yet here you are using it like you were born this way,"_** They paced around the ground, greatsword grinding against the floor. **_"You think no one knows your secret? I suspected from the day we met. I_** **know** ** _you're not a fully-fledged Dark Knight, you're only half."_**

Spectre ground his teeth. "So what? Like that changes anything!" He produced a number of knives between his knuckles and threw them, not at the Stalker but at the sources of light in the Summoning Pits.

The Darkness surrounding the knives blotted out the light, blanketing the pits in darkness. As the Stalker was remotely unfazed at his actions, Spectre threw more until all that was left was the light from the distance. Both of them blended in perfectly in the dark, although their red colors can be a dead giveaway to their location. Then again, Spectre could easily use his Titan armor to be almost invisible. _Almost_.

"Let's dance, bozo."

Spectre leapt upwards from the tightrope right before the Stalker threw a razor-sharp dagger in his direction, easily cutting it in one throw. He threw more in return, blades flying like a swarm of bees. In the darkness, the Stalker deflected the knives with minimal effort standing still and watched as their opponent swooped down from above, armor reverted to its true look and cape like the wings of a bat ─ or dragon ─ in flight. Raze-Lighter was drawn, flames reigniting and the blade over his head.

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

"You're crazy!"

" _Warewareha kareno tame ni suru hitsuyouga ari masu. Demo karewo shien shiyo u to, Orikkusu, kareno chikaraha watashitachi no nochikuru._ We have to for his sake. If we even _try_ to help him, Oryx and his forces will come after us." Cloud calmly said. All six of the team including Eroxs were in the _Xiphos_ 's lower level, where many of the tools and equipment Dark Knights need are stored.

Lightning growled. "I'm his older sister and I swore to mother I'd protect him!"

" _Dono you na shiyou ha, warewarekareni warewareha shin de iru?!_ What use are we to him if we're dead?!"

"I hate to start picking sides but Cloud's right," Silver-79 interrupts, having just enough of this. "If we're dead, it'll worsen Spectre's mental state. We know how the deaths of his allies and friends impacted him."

Lightning lowered her fist and faced the Exo. "When did you become a psychoanalyst, Silver? This doesn't concern you!"

"It does from the moment we became Nero Bianco!" He argued, Arc energy faintly sparking in his hand. "While the rest of you were divided by your superiors, Rez, Reaper, and I have been there for him! I'm not saying it in a negative light, but you had no control over sticking together or not, right?"

Lightning stared at the Exo, all her anger completely dissipated over his words. She turned to Cloud, who nodded in agreement with Silver. Her fist violently shook, and just as she was about to hit something, Cloud caught hold of her wrist.

"He'll make it out. We'll be waiting for the ship to turn around."

"Knowing him, he set his ship's autopilot to come after him when mortally wounded…"

"But can it detect him if he becomes Taken?" Silver folded his arms.

Lightning stared at him horrified. The Taken were extradimensional, and the signal can't go beyond it!

"Artemis, override the autopilot! Turn this ship around!"

 **"Already on it!"**

Reaper looked on from the window, her HUD displaying his vitals. The connection was strong, even if they were close to breaking through the maze under the Moon's surface. His heartbeat was fast, typical of when he fought. But it kept rising. Rising to a point where something like fear ─ or cockiness ─ was starting to show. Either that or defeat.

"C'mon, c'mon…" she whispered, hand over her heart. "Don't die on me…"

Unfortunately, Eroxys had heard her prayer despite not being in earshot. They intercepted the signal coming to and from Reaper's HUD, and they saw the same vitals. Only they understood what it implied. And they didn't like it at all. Their canine companion was knocked out. Guess they underestimated the Stalker's strength. "Looks like there is one thing left to do…"

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

 _Damn, they're good!_ Even with his night vision module in his visor, he couldn't believe that the Stalker could see his movements coming! Sword clashed against sword as sparks briefly ignited the darkness. Growling, Spectre put away Duskdancer and summoned Hayden's Glaive spinning the bladed throwing weapon to near-chainsaw speeds. He swung it upwards. The Stalker deflected the attack with a dagger, the Glaive flying out of his hand. It went on a flight path of its own, soaring through the dark and headed back. Just as it was within proximity to release its viral gas, the Stalker blocked it with their greatsword.

 _Now's my chance!_ Spectre's armor transformed into his Hunter armor and rushed towards the Taken Dark Knight, Glaive returning to his hand and shrinking. He stabbed the Stalker once again and hit the switch to ignite Raze-Lighter's Solar flares. The blade burst into flames, hopefully putting an end to it all.

It didn't.

As the flames evaporated the Taken goo-like blood, the substance just as quickly enveloped the blade and kept the flames from igniting. Right before the Stalker could send another wave of Taken energy, Spectre warped up above one of the pillars and left Raze-Lighter impaled. He breathed heavily, thankful he blended in with the shadows. His cape wrapped itself around him, concealing him from the Stalker's view. Hopefully. Even the light coming from his helmet's visor was dimmed enough to blend in.

 ** _"_** ** _You think the dark can be your ally? You merely accepted it, but didn't embrace it completely,"_** the Stalker said, prowling about after removing the flaming sword in their chest and smashing the blade into pieces. Like they were toying with their prey, the Stalker put away the greatsword. **_"I was born in the Darkness, shaped and molded by it. Like all the rest, Pendragon. I didn't see the truth until I was already dead, and by then…"_**

Spectre held his breath. The night-vision module showed him that the Stalker had vanished, _evaporated_ to Traveler knows where. He whipped his head around to try and find them, scanners gone wild in hopes to find them. They were gone. Like they never existed. _This can't be right! My sensors are tuned to find any form of anomaly!_

 ** _"_** ** _It was nothing but_** **blinding** ** _!"_**

Before he could turn around, Spectre felt a powerful kick hit him in the back and was sent off the pillar. As he was in midflight, his armor changed back and he aimed his wrist-mounted grapnel launcher and fired. Right before the hook hit a surface, another one of the Stalker's daggers tore through the cable, then impaling itself on the grapnel launcher. As another pillar shattered impact, the Stalker readied their bow and drew it back, Taken energy shrouding the arrowtip.

Spectre weakly got out from the rubble of the pillar, struggling to get up on his feet. He tried to stand, only for his legs to give in and have him on his knees. As he looked down on the floor, he watched as part of his helmet fall apart. One of his eyes were exposed from the broken armor piece, blood running down like a tear and bruises littering his face. Even his scar was visible. What was left of his HUD displayed critical damage to both the armor and his own health gauge dropping in numbers. Thankfully, his oxygen supply was directly fed to his body from the armor and not through a breather. He wanted to gag and spew out the blood in his mouth. Instead he swallowed it down, grimacing at the metallic taste.

 ** _[Spectre, you know you can't win this! It's suicide!]_** Primus cried out in his head, watching as his partner was starting to lose completely.

 _No…! I can beat them!_ With the help of his tendrils of Darkness, Spectre was brought back up to his feet, some of them helped to maintain his balance. They wrapped around his legs, replacing the damaged emergency exoskeleton within the armor.

 ** _[Listen to yourself for once! You're going all in to get this done at the cost of your life?! Can't you be selfish for once?]_**

The tendrils synced with his legs' movements, shakily making his steps as he held onto Duskdancer's hilt. With a hand over his chest, he tried to steady his rapid heartbeat. He looked upwards and saw the Stalker still aiming their bow at him as the Taken energy continued to grow.

"Go on, shoot me! End it here and now! See if you have the guts to let the arrow go!" Spectre cried out, provoking the Stalker.

 ** _"_** ** _You are too easy to predict,"_** the arrow ceased its channel of Taken energy but it was still drawn. **_"I know your tricks, Pendragon. You thought you and your beloved sister were the only ones under Teshin's teachings?"_** The Stalker leapt down from the pillar, bow put away and pulled out a dagger. **_"Balance and deception were the fundamentals of a Dark Knight like you. Powerful to the uninitiated. But we are the initiated, aren't we Sparda?"_**

Spectre spat out his blood, staining part of the visor red. "W-who are you?"

Next thing he knew, his head was snapped to the side by a thrown fist and another portion of his helmet shattered. His tendrils attempted to fight back for their defenseless master but shriveled up and turned into smoke as quickly as they could manifest to a physical form. He stumbled to the ground the moment his only support gave way, then his chestplate being stomped on by the Stalker. Quickly, he grasped the ankle to get them off him but it proved futile when another kick struck him in the face and almost lost consciousness. His mouth gasped for breath as the boot was starting to crush part of the chestplate and into his chest.

 ** _"_** ** _Such a shame too. I thought you would be better than I remembered. But here you are, a few steps lost all because of your beloved Vesper,"_** they taunted, the son of Trionus half-consciously glaring daggers at the Stalker at the mention of his dead fiancée. **_"Admirable to try and pick yourself up, but flawed in every way possible. Your efforts will be in vain, and so will your sister's. Then, I will break you."_**

Maybe Spectre should've listened to Primus after all. The more the Stalker applied force to the chestplate, the more danger he was in as that region they're stepping on housed the main component of the system directly feeding him oxygen in an environment like this. Spectre raised a hand at the ceiling, followed by the Stalker's throwing dagger thrust down to his chestplate. His head snapped against the floor when the blade had pierced through like there was no armor at all, even right through a rib. Whatever was left of his helmet was gone, unveiling his face and how damaged it was.

 _Dammit, monofilament edge!_ Spectre _c_ oughed out his blood in his mouth as the Stalker continued to twist the edge and add more damage to it all. He threw a punch at them but all it did was provoke them and punch him straight in the cheek. _Primus, can you pull me out of here?!_

 ** _[I wish I could, but the level of Darkness this guy's making is impossible to get a signal out to autopilot. I told you, you needed backup!]_** Primus answered.

 ** _"_** ** _Now, what should I break first? Your spirit?"_** The Stalker plunged the knife into his chest again, another rib gone and most likely hanging by a muscle. Spectre groaned painfully. **_"Or your body? Which will make you suffer more, Sparda? Shall I give you the courtesy of seeing your beloved Vesper in the afterlife?"_**

It was no use. With the stabs, his blood already started leaking into his punctured lung. His chest slowly rose and fell to prolong his life a little longer, and his blood formed into bubbles. "D-damn it…"

The Stalker pointed the bloodied dagger right between his eyes, raised for the kill. Just as they plunged it down at him, Spectre caught his wrists and used all of his strength left to stop it from easily killing him. Just as his eyes were fixated on the blade inching its way towards him, the Stalker put their efforts forward and tried to win the stalemate. But they didn't expect Spectre to exert this much strength at his weakest. They knew his weaknesses, both from when they were alive to what they've become now. Vesper was one of them, and another was his own hesitation of the Darkness's power.

 ** _"Give up! You are dead anyway! Even if you find a way to escape, I will hunt you down!"_** The Stalker said, exerting all they could into their arms.

The tip of the monofilament dagger scraped his forehead, his blood started pooling from the wound. He was losing, running out of time. Not even his armor had the energy to transform into his Titan armor. All of it was expended. Taken to keep him alive as long as possible. From what was left, only one percent was left in reserve from the energy that was rerouted. As his ears were deafening to hear, and his vision blurring out, he still kept his strength to stop it.

"…er, no!"

That was the last thing he heard.

* * *

 **Hey guys! I'm not dead! So, I know it's a little too late to say 'Happy 2017' to you all, but I've had a lot of things going down since the New Year's Special.**

 **Basic rundown of what's going on: I fear that I may take too long to update in future chapters after this point mainly due to me writing another story at the same time. It's hard for me to balance out the two when ideas are fresh for a new story and currently in writing. If I spend too long with** ** _Destiny: Skyfall_** **, then I may have lost the spark to write the new one by the time I finish a chapter. I can't balance out these two at once!**

 **Now, this is not a hiatus. Far from it! All I'm asking you readers is to please be patient as I try to balance my new project with** ** _Destiny: Skyfall_** **. After I finished writing a chapter for my new one, then I'll dedicate time to write the next chapter for this fanfic. Hopefully, this plan will work out as I** ** _also_** **have to make it through classes. For this confrontation between Spectre and the Stalker, I suggest listening to _Fight Night_ from the _Batman Vs. Superman_ soundtrack.**

 **Anyways, thanks guys and I'll see you Guardians in the next chapter!**


	33. II-XVIII: Of Dragons and Flames

**_Chapter XVIII: Of Dragons and Flames_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1703 hours, December 19, 2714_

 _The Summoning Pits, Hellmouth, The Moon_

It all happened in a blur. Knowing him, he was more focused on survival than what happened around him. It was a tactic Teshin had hammered into his head in the years he trained under his 'stepfather.' If he had a choice between Teshin and what his father taught for survival and combat, it would be the former for survival and the latter for combat.

The monofiliament dagger the Stalker used was pulled away from his face, followed by a blur of something _incredibly_ fast. A spiral like a drill tackled the Stalker from the side, finally giving the Son of Trionus enough time to regain his strength to optimal condition. He rolled away on the ground and reached out for the hilt of Raze-Lighter. As it obeyed and flew back into his hand, he put away what was left of the sword and looked up. A hand rested over his shoulder. He felt his bones being reconstructed and regenerating thanks to both the Darkness and his Animas Crystal, forcing him to reach out for the broken bits of bone that his body discarded for the new ones and yank them out.

Spectre saw blood dripping from the corner of his eye. He ran a finger over the scarred side of his face. A thin cut was there, but not his previous scar exactly. This one had to be above it, a new one. _Dammit, one scar was enough!_ He wiped the back of his armored hand against the cut, a trail of crimson blending in the sea of black and crimson on his armor. Next to his hand was an energy shuriken, seething with Taken energy and had to be just as sharp as Leon's Spira throwing daggers.

Dread shrouded itself over him like a Stormcaller summoning Arc energy and his jaw hung open slightly.

"No!" He cursed under his breath.

The twister stopped the moment when the Stalker finally countered it, revealing itself to be none other than Eroxs who backed away a few feet. Ashes scattered about like snow, and so did some things resembling rose petals. Their scout rifle-scythe was at hand, tip pierced through the ground.

"What are you doing, Eroxs?!" Spectre demanded.

Eroxs turned their head to his direction but kept their eyes fixed on the Stalker. "I'm not letting you kill yourself from your own agenda. Not yet."

"Do you realize what you've done? _You put everyone I know at risk by showing up and saving me!_ "

 ** _"_** ** _So, the Heir shows themselves after all…"_** The Stalker got back up, planting their sword in the ground. **_"Poor little hatchling, brought to the world with so much power but you cannot control it."_**

Eroxs ground their teeth and tightened their grip around the handle of the transforming gun-scythe. "Watch it, this hatchling has a serious bite."

The Stalker cackled manically, and Eroxs tightened their grip further. **_"So young, so young it's pathetic… What a waste of time to be hatched just to protect someone."_**

"I won't let you touch him as long as I can fight!" Without warning, the cloak-wearing Titan spiraled towards the Taken Dark Knight and started attacking with their scythe. They began the mystifying dance that Spectre had witnessed when they were fighting off the Infested, the blade moving like the wind.

Stalker was fast but their speed doesn't even come as close to Eroxs's. Whenever Eroxs missed a swing or the Stalker evades it, they quickly recovered from the moment and struck again. Every time they swung the giant sword, Eroxys swung the scythe at the right moment to stop it from contact. The two fell into a stalemate when Eroxs held off a slash using the long handle of the weapon. Sparks flew as the Stalker tried to cleave through the weapon, but the weapon was somehow durable to their blade.

 ** _"_** ** _You have some nerve, hatchling. To stop me from killing Pendragon!"_**

"You Taken won't have another Dark Knight under Oryx's control!" Eroxs flipped the weapon around, curving blade just close to Stalker's neck and pulled the trigger. The massive recoil from the shot managed to throw the greatsword off, sending the Titan spinning in the air on purpose. Another shot from the weapon reversed the spin and landed on the flat of the sword.

Eroxs pointed the barrel at the Stalker's face. Right before they could pull the trigger, the Stalker sent a burst of Taken energy to get them off the sword. It worked, but not in the way they wanted. The so-called hatchling used the sword as a springboard and leapt high above the Stalker. Letting go of the hidden button on the grip, the scythe reverted into a scout rifle and let loose a torrent of rounds. The Stalker stabbed their sword again and a pseudo-Ward of Dawn was erected, bullets deflecting off the surface of the barrier.

Spectre finally managed to get up and unsheathed Duskdancer, a new helmet encasing his head after his default was shattered. He didn't want to use Hayden's helmet as a replacement, as he felt that he was dishonoring his deceased best friend. The helmet was only to be put on a shelf like a trophy or memento, not in combat ever again. He charged at the Stalker with Duskdancer at the ready, phasing through the bubble and fighting to the best he could with limited energy. Slash after slash, the Stalker evaded until Spectre kicked at the impaled sword. It flew out easily and brought down the shield, out of the Taken Dark Knight's reach.

An aura of energy eclipsed the Titan and the Nightstalker's bow formed in their hand. Eroxs quickly pulled back the Void string and fired the arrow, landing next to the Stalker and a tether tied them down. Spectre was smart enough to back away before the tether could ensnare him as well. They quickly saw that didn't work to slow Stalker down and fired two more Shadowshots. Now that it ensnared the Stalker in a triangular pattern, one of the Titan's fists sparked uncontrollably with Arc energy and struck the ground once they landed. A tsunami erupted from the crater, waves hitting and electrocuting the Taken Dark Knight.

The runes running up and down Duskdancer ignited once again, transforming the weapon into a more deadlier version with jagged and serrated edges. And by taking his chances, Spectre stabbed the Stalker once more, making sure that the sword did a lot more damage than Raze-Lighter did. He thrust it forward and then pulled it out quickly, runes continuing to glow as it purged the Taken blood off it. And like never before, he swung just as precisely and fast as he did with Path to the Light. Perhaps even faster.

"I thought I told you not to follow me!" Spectre said, kicking the Stalker away as the Titan landed next him.

"A bit too late for that, don't you think?"

Spectre growled frustratedly. "I'll deal with you later. This is my fight; no one else's!" He charged after the Stalker and left Eroxs behind, a blur of crimson energy enveloping him as he dashed forward. Before he knew it, the Stalker imitated Spectre's Slash Dash and the two were at odds again swords clashing.

 ** _"_** ** _You'll regret the day you—"_**

 _"_ _Just shut up and_ fight _!"_ The son of Trionus quickly drew out their combat knife and stabbed the Stalker's shoulder. He was able to dodge a thrown dagger at the same time and kicked them back again.

The two continued their clash, swords swinging and their anger boiling over. It was as though the two knew each other's every move, since when one attacked the other deflected it. Eroxs joined in as well, fighting alongside Spectre with their scythe. Even as they outnumbered the Stalker, they had to deal with the greatsword and possibly thrown daggers. The scythe was used effectively and mystifyingly as well, its wielder pulling the trigger to use the massive recoil to rebound from a miss. Unfortunately, none of the rounds could've ever made their mark, intentional or not.

Unfortunately the Stalker stopped sliding and grasped their shoulder, wound sealing up just as rapidly as Spectre could. Maybe slightly faster. They rolled their shoulder as though nothing happened, then their neck. Once they looked up, both Dark Knight and Titan charged with their bladed weapons at the ready. The moment they saw Spectre conjure his Exalted Blade and the Hatchling the Nightstalker's signature Void bow and arrow. Under the helmet, the Stalker grinned.

 ** _"_** ** _Your powers are useless!"_** A simple finger pointing at the two was all they needed. A wave of Darkness swept past the Guardian and Dark Knight, forcing them to their knees. Both the Exalted Blade and Nightstalker's bow dissipated from their hands. Eroxs's Golden Bull Mask was sparking with electricity, the waves running across it like an ocean on sand.

Both the energy reserves and Super energy depleted entirely right after their Supers were nullified and felt heavier than normal. Spectre's armor was still on the reserve power supply after the damage he took destroyed the main power conduit. "Damn, whoever thought combining the oxygen feeder and power conduit in one place must die…!" He muttered angrily, hand over the region of his chestplate where said oxygen feeder/main power conduit was damaged.

 ** _"_** ** _Pathetic!"_** In an instant, Spectre was pulled towards Stalker by some invisible force. He looked around his torso and found a mist surrounding him. Undoubtedly a Pull ability from the Mag subclass. Their greatsword was ready to impale him. Try as he could to break free from the ability, the best he could do was to wait…

And counter!

He swung Duskdancer and struck the side of the greatsword, diverting it from impaling him to a fatal degree. Spectre broke free and tackled the Stalker down to the ground. A hand was on their neck, effectively pinning the Taken Dark Knight down. Primus was able to fill his energy reserve and activated his Radial Javelin. Four ethereal Duskdancers appeared behind him, pointed at the Stalker. Once they came down, they impaled their feet and hands like a crucifixion. The Stalker struggled to get the javelins off them but Spectre's tendrils further tied them down. Not even the Taken blood could dissipate the ethereal javelins. They screamed angrily at Spectre.

Now pissed off, Spectre tightened a fist and threw a punch in their helmet's visor. He wasn't having anymore of this. His fist seethed with Arc energy and he punched again. An unsatisfactory feeling burned within him, and his thoughts _demanded_ to unveil who is the Stalker. Another punch, this time of Void energy. Still not enough, even when Arc energy ran across their helmet and the Void disintegrated a chunk off. A Solar-infused fist landed against the helmet, giving the other side of the helmet an equal melted part off. How many punches was it going to take?! His head was clouded with questions. Who did Oryx take? Why turn on _him_? He fist twitched frustratedly, the Darkness consuming it in a shroud and with all the strength he had left, delivered one last punch.

But he didn't know if unmasking this Taken Dark Knight was a good idea or not.

His eyes widened as soon as his last punch knocked the helmet off the Stalker. Spectre was dumbfounded and he slowly backed away from the Stalker, tendrils and javelins slowly starting to disappear. He shook his head deniably.

"No…! It can't be! _It's impossible!"_

Staring back at him was his own dead fiancée. But not like when he last saw her in the Afterlife. Instead, it was Vesper when she was corrupted. The Vesper that forced him into killing the woman he loved before Reaper. She was laughing, laughing like she did when he was chasing the corrupted her down. It haunted him still. Her once beautiful emerald eyes had been tainted to the most repulsive gold and the blackened veins still popped out all over her face. The laughter, twisted and almost entirely taunting, echoed in his head.

"You're…You're not real! You can't be!" He kept shaking his head in denial, denying the possibility that Vesper was alive let alone _Taken_. She wouldn't turn on him, even after everything they did together! The laugh increased in echoes and was almost at the verge of losing it completely.

His world was spiraling further out of control, jumpstarting again after four years. Knots were forming in his heart and stomach, and his mouth kept mouthing one word; no. Guilt hammered against his head as his memories of the day he changed came back. The chasing after her, being yelled at by the Cyphers to terminate her despite his protests, and then the killing blow to Nero Pendragon. Make it stop, make it stop, make it stop! That was what he wanted, not to face this tragedy again after he accepted who he was.

"…er, snap out of it!"

The Summoning Pits began to rumble, some of the lunar cavern falling and turning into dust on impact. What the hell was going on?! Eroxs was able to break free of the Taken restraints from the Stalker's wave of Taken energy and lunged at the disbelief-stricken Spectre right before a stalactite from above killed him. They wrapped their arms around him protectively and looked up towards the light in the distance. Then they looked back at where Spectre had unmasked the Stalker. Gone. They then fled to where their canine companion was knocked out and took it under its wing.

A sphere of Equilibrium enclosed around them, Eroxs's cloak wrapping around the three of them. The rumbling was stronger up here and Eroxs looked up. Some of the cavern wall was cracking. They prayed that their escape plan will work. In a sudden burst of Light and Darkness, they disappeared from the Summoning Pits. And the fragment hit the ground beneath them.

 _ **-Destiny: Skyfall-**_

Numb.

That was the first thing he felt. Spectre tried to open his eyes but they wouldn't listen. He moved his fingers. A rough ground brushed against his armored fingers, the texture and patterns familiar. Was he in the Afterlife again? Or is he in the land of the living? Right now in his cloudy mind, he yearned for the voice of either Vesper or Reaper. To prove he was in either life.

Nothing.

He tried lifting his upper body, but his arms gave way and he crashed down to the ground again. At last he can open his eyes again. A starry sky greeted him, crystal clear and scattered with many diamonds in the sky. Weakly, he reached for the sky and held on to as many stars as he could. Where is he now?

"You're awake."

Spectre turned his head. Sitting next to him with crossed legs was the cloaked Titan. Sparks still ran across the helmet though it was infrequent and rather a split second's worth. Next to Eroxs was the canine that partially helped him, tail slightly wagging and lying down with a hand along its armored head.

"Where are we?" Spectre put a hand over his forehead, the broken horn-like ornament of Hayden's helmet right in the center of his palm. _Sorry Hayden, to have your helmet be put through battle again…_

"Back on the surface. I transmatted you out before we got crushed by the collapsing of the cave," more sparks jumped across their helmet, increasing in number the more Eroxs spoke. "We're inside an outpost. It's safe to take off your helmet."

The son of Trionus Pendragon regained his strength and sat up, catching the attention of the dog when the helmet loudly retracted back into his neckguard. Its ears perked up immediately when he got up but quickly flattened like it was scolded. A low whine erupted from the dog and the hooded Titan petted it reassuringly.

"Did that Taken Dark Knight…?"

"They fled. But they'll be back."

It was a matter of yelling at them or thanking them in Spectre's head. He was grateful for being saved before the worst happened but there was also the trivial matter of yelling at them for endangering Tohsaka and the others for that same act. Spectre couldn't make up his mind and sighed defeatedly. It hurt him to the point that he gave up. Being thankful it is.

It still haunted him what he saw under the Stalker's helmet. There was no way, it just isn't possible for anyone to survive his fiancée's custom-built guns with a point-blank headshot. Their brains would've been blown to bits with that amount of firepower!

But something else bothered him. Something he heard twice.

"What's wrong?"

Spectre looked at Eroxs, "…You called me 'father.'" He stated. "Why would you call me that when you don't know anything about me?"

Eroxs fell silent, but their hand still petted their companion. Spectre had to deny having a child, mainly because that child wasn't born. The sparks kept going around Eroxs's helmet.

"I…don't know where to start," they said, their voice filter slowly starting to malfunction.

Spectre got up on his feet, leaning against the wall since his body was still numb from the fight. He looked at the Titan and their companion. "We'll start with this: who are you really?" He demanded, sending the Titan into a surprised yelp with the harshness in his voice.

The canine whined again, louder and ears still flat against its head. Eroxs turned and hushed their companion, who then rested its head on its paws. "…Very well. I couldn't keep it from you for a day anyway." Eroxs stood up and loosened the cloak's bond, pulling down the hood as well. "Look closely."

Spectre kept still but his eyes didn't. Eroxs looked at him in the eye but he could sense the suspense they felt. The anticipation that could stop anyone's heart. He examined Eroxs closely. What was so different about this armor that he needed to look closely? Then, he saw it. Where their cloak was tied to around their neckguard was a chain, and with it, a crystal blue as sapphires.

"That's…!" He dug around in his pack around his waist and pulled out a similar necklace, letting the crystal hang from his fist. "But how did you—?"

The Titan said nothing. Instead, they reached for the Golden Bull Mask and disengaged the locks securing it to their neck. The sparks ceased to continue and a hand over where the mouth would be removed a device and dropped it. He figured it was the voice filter. Instead of pulling it apart, Eroxs lifted it from their head nervously. They stopped for a brief moment and Spectre heard them take a deep breath. A tumble of brown hair fell out from under the helmet first, and soon after they fully removed the helmet and held it under an arm.

Spectre was greeted to a woman—no, it had to be a _teenager_. A Guardian this young? How is that possible? Her face was younger than Reaper's and possibly just as defined as hers for Eroxs's age. Her brown hair was wavy like Blake's, one of the female Guardians his Ancient Vanguard has taught with the basis of survival. A pair of green eyes stared back at him, saddened but youth was in them. She frowned like a child and turned away from Spectre, who has to be at least twice as shocked. Shocked, but it hit him.

"R-Rose?" He stammered, clearly at a loss of words and then looking over her where her transforming scout rifle was slung at her side like a sword. "You deserve better than a weapon and a world of trouble. I'm sorry."

His daughter looked at him. Her eyes were watery and some streamed down her cheeks as she started sobbing. Not of being upset. Spectre put a hand on her face and with his thumb wiped one side of the tears away.

"Father…!" She leapt into his arms and hugged him tight. Her sobbing continued even as they were reunited. Rose missed her father, and being there by his side was all she wanted. "Father…"

Happiness bloomed in his heart. This was real…! From the ashes of his life, a flower bloomed. Hope still remains for this dragon plagued with tragedy. Even when he thought he lost it after killing Vesper. He could care less about how Rose aged from a child to a teenager in two weeks' time. What mattered to him was that he still has something left from his tragedy. Something much more meaningful than the weapons built by his fiancée. His own daughter.

Spectre held onto her and hugged her back as she repeated that one word he only briefly experienced. He let her cry on his shoulder and ran a hand through the back of her hair assuringly. As Rose kept crying, her father hushed her like she was a baby. "Shh… It's okay, Rose. Daddy's here for you."

"I missed you so much, father." Rose said, voice still shaky as she buried her face into his shoulder.

"I missed you too, Rose. My little girl. My precious little Rose." He could care less that it sounded corny what he said.

Rose wiped the tears from her eyes and looked towards the corner of the outpost. A spectral figure in the armor of a Huntress stood there, hands clasped in front and an aura radiating like a Sunsinger. One of Equilibrium. She smiled and so did the figure.

"Mother…thank you."

Vesper approached her daughter and patted her on the head. She smiled warmly. _"I love you so much, honey. I know how much you wanted to experience being alive, and thank the Traveler I have that gift to transition you from the Afterlife to the land of the living."_

"Even when you could only use it once. I wish you were with father and I."

Vesper frowned. _"I can't leave the Afterlife, Rose. The Afterlife is where I stay after I die, to make sure it doesn't collapse,"_ Vesper saw her daughter frown but her eyes understood why. _"Rose, promise me something."_

"Anything, mother." Rose said.

 _"_ _Don't antagonize Reaper. I want you to accept her as a mother figure, and if your father decides to marry her, accept her as your stepmother."_

Rose hesitated for a moment but soon smiled. "I promise." She was rewarded with another pat on the head and a smile from her mother.

 _"_ _I love you, Rose. Take care of your father and yourself for me."_ Vesper kissed her daughter on the forehead. _"If you want to talk with me again, you know where to find me."_

The Pendragon Heir nodded and without further explanation saw her mother's aura fading. Most likely to rest from expending her energy from communicating with her. Rose couldn't blame her mother for her place in the Afterlife. She hugged her father tighter.

"I promise, mother…"

* * *

 **A/N: Okay, I cannot believe that this chapter took me only four days to start and finish.**

 **Prophet: Even that broke the average of at least two weeks.**

 **Me: So far, I think the plan I proposed last chapter is actually working. And like I said, I have no idea when the future chapters will come around due to me writing a new story at the same time which I put at top priority for chapter-writing. And thus, thank you for your support and I will get the next chapter out when I can. For this moment of reunion, I would suggest using** ** _Aerith's Theme_** **from the** ** _Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children_** **soundtrack. (Which I also happen to use every time Vesper appeared in the first arc.) Until then, I will see you again next chapter, Guardians.**


	34. II-XIX: Peace of Mind

**_Chapter XIX: Peace of Mind_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _2130 Hours, December 20, 2714_

 _Guardian Quarters, The Tower, Earth_

It's hard to get over it, knowing that from the ashes of one's life something remained intact. Hasn't been a day knowing that fact and I'm still overwhelmed by what the Traveler has given back for my service and dedication for fighting the Darkness. Heh, it's funny: I'm technically a Guardian of Equilibrium even though I was raised as a Dark Knight. Call me childish from time to time, but I wanted to make sure that what happened yesterday wasn't a dream. That Rose wasn't an illusion. Splashing my face with the waters in Old Russia and even going as far as dunking my head in it, blinking three times, slapping myself, dammit I did everything possible to make sure I wasn't dreaming!

But it was real. Rose is alive, grown up—which somewhat scares me given our age difference—and giving me another reason to live and protect.

After we regrouped with the rest of the team, all of us decided to return to the Vanguard and report our findings. Besides, Cloud did a good job and burned all the places where the Infested growth was hiding. By the time we returned, I told everyone that I'll report alone and everyone else should get some rest. Leon and Aqua were already there, requesting Silver's help to assist in modifying the stealth drive they found so that it'll cloak all of us.

By the time Rose and I got to the Hall of Guardians, I reported to Zavala and Ikora about the Infested and how they were dealt with before it spread out of control. Of course, I didn't give Ikora a sample given what it can do but I did show the helmet feed of what happened before it was smashed to hell. For the _fourth_ time. When they brought up the 'Stalker', I was inclined to say what I saw but I held back. It couldn't be Vesper… My mind must've been fooling with what I saw. Rose even confirmed that it wasn't her but she didn't get a glimpse of who was behind the helmet.

And again, there was some concern coming from Zavala regarding my daughter. I swear its déjà vu all over again. And like last time, I stopped him before he could kick her out. Even though I pretty much screwed up somewhere along my argument. And I mean really, _really_ mean it.

* * *

 _"_ _Spectre, this is now the second time you've taken someone under your wing. Why would I allow you to do this again if this one has no Ghost and isn't a Dark Knight?" Zavala put his hands on the table across from me, where I stood at my side of the table with Rose at my side. Trying to keep my composure in front of them regarding family wasn't easy to maintain, especially if this was personal._

 _"_ _Zavala, I can assure you that this Guardian is not hostile. So why is it you would want to kick them out?" She was getting scared, I can see it in her fidgeting and shuffling. Could I blame her for her state of mind right now? No. Dammit, think!_

 _"_ _Spectre, what is it that you're hiding from us this time?" Ikora asked me, adding more to the weight and pressure that Zavala already placed on me._

 _Now I'm really under fire. This is something I have to steel myself for again. Now I remember why I hate these odds: tackling two at once in an argument isn't my strong point! Especially if they're veteran Guardians! Rez and Silver I could easily deal with since Silver's the only one with a brain to make arguments, but these two? It's like tackling on two of my strictest mentors in the Academy with both arms tied behind my back! C'mon Rose, don't panic on me right now…_

 _Oh, how much I wish I could've told myself the same thing. Normally I'm not the type who panics but when it came to situations like this then I panic beyond hell on the inside. The ones regarding family and friends. Typically I'd have Primus run through my anti-panic exercises but he's busy relaying information right to the others._

 _And so I lost it._

 _"_ _So you would kick out another one of my family? One who is my own_ daughter _?!" I yelled, easily spooking Rose and the Vanguards. My blood was boiling but I had to make sure that my tendrils didn't show up and lash out at the Vanguards. That was easy enough. Hell, I was even_ praying _that nobody else heard that this new Guardian I brought with me was actually my daughter._

 _When I looked up to look at the Titan and Warlock Vanguards in the eye, they were both clearly shocked and showed it in their own way. Their eyes averted to my daughter, who stared at the floor and continued to fidget with her hands._

 _Here comes the longest explanation I've ever done._

* * *

And so I spent at least an hour explaining how Rose is my daughter and how was it possible for me to be at least physically eight years older than her. Honestly, I don't think Vesper would appreciate it if I told Ikora about the Afterlife. She already has a lot on her plate, and the Warlocks messing around with the concept isn't going to bode well for her. I vaguely mentioned Vesper to them and I bent the truth around how Rose was still developing in her mother's womb the day I executed her. When Ikora and Zavala started asking her questions about this, she responded truthfully and as timidly as she could. After Zavala finally gave in and let Rose stay at the Tower, I was more than relieved. I still think the shock of me having a child was more than enough to rock them out of their normal demeanor. They'll probably be that way for a few hours. Maybe a day.

Sparks were flying in front of my welding helmet as I repaired Raze-Lighter from the damage it took from the fight. To think a Taken Dark Knight would break the metal with their own hands… Being in my workshop in my quarters again just felt wrong for some reason. Typically I'd let Primus handle it with the mobile foundry but this was something that mechanized arms cannot repair of this level. Part of the hilt was damaged and decontaminating it from the Taken membrane was a bitch. After I welded back the parts that were damaged, I had to make it go through a durability test. Raze-Lighter regrew the blade, slightly blazing on fire and took to a newer blade. Peak condition? Just barely by the skin of its teeth but it should get the job done. As long as I don't let it in the hands of the Stalker or someone just as strong. Thank the Traveler that my broken helmet can be recreated by my armor otherwise I'd have to go through the forging process of making a helmet. And truth be told, I _suck_ at forging armor compared to weapons.

The welding tool stopped and I lifted my welding helmet's visor up, observing how the sword looked after the repairs and modifications I made to it. My hands held it like I was given the sword through a ceremony. A newer, serrated edge and at least twice as sharp and deadly. My lips curled into a smile. Thanks for the forging lessons, Teshin. The hand around the hilt of Raze-Lighter wrapped around it and held it in a reverse grip. Flames ignited but not as deadly as it would be deployed, rather like a lighter over an unknown surface. Just as quickly as the flames ignited it extinguished and I put it aside from my workshop table into a sheath I custom built for it.

Right before I could reinforce another of my swords, I felt fur brushing past my legs and I calmly put my tools down. "Just can't have enough attention, can you boy?" Staring up at me was my own canine pal Neo, tail wagging and panting happily.

I've known Neo for a long time. Hell, he's been with me since I was forty-two years old; physically fourteen. He might be descended from a German shepherd but I know he is both vicious and reliable in a fight. From what I heard, household pets like dogs and cats were also given an extended life expectancy to last three times as long. On the battlefield he's a vicious beast but outside it? He's just as attention-hungry as any dog would be. I could barely do any work when he wants attention! Can I blame Neo? Nah, not really.

Neo barked and I scratched him behind his ears. "I missed you too boy. I'm sorry I left you behind." There was a good reason for that. If I came to the Tower with him, then the Vanguard would already be suspicious of me. He growled contently and moved his head against my palm, enjoying the treatment I was giving him. "How did Rose tame you?" Another bark and continued wagging of his tail. Knowing how this is confusing to me, I'm going out on a limb and say Neo knows Vesper's scent anywhere even if it was on Rose.

Seriously, every time he barks to answer a question it's like someone put a microphone next to him and connected it to an amplifier. How I wish they invented some kind of collar that translates dog… Regardless it's nice to see he hasn't changed much. Neo whined hungrily and I reached for a bowl of dog food on the counter where my own food would be most of the time. "Here you go, bud; well-done chopped steak." Neo sniffed at the aroma the bowl was creating and looked up at me. Another bark and a look that I could interpret as, 'Hey, that's just how I like it!' before digging in happily. That should keep him busy for a while at the least.

Just as I was about to get back to work, the door knocked. Three knocks in succession.

"Come in." I called out. The door slid open and I saw Rose come inside, still in her Titaness-Huntress armor and hood down. "What is it, honey?" Even I'll admit I sound like an old man… Better now than never to get used to it. At the moment she looked at me, the door sealed shut and locked itself.

"Father, I was hoping you could take a look at my weapon," she had her scout rifle in hand and I took it by the barrel. "I think something's wrong with it."

As I inspected the rifle, I noticed the subtle buttons around the grip. Must be how it could transform into a scythe, I figured. Definitely Vesper's work, I know how she puts a serial code and her customization techniques.

"What's wrong with it?"

"I think it's the chamber or magazine lock. When I try loading a magazine it won't stay." As though to prove it, the magazine slid out of the chamber. Looks like trying to repair the Supra energy machine gun is gonna have to wait.

I set the scout rifle down on the table and took a closer look at the chamber with the help of a flashlight. Vesper really outdid herself, I'll say it now. This is different from the Jade Rabbit! Shouldn't be hard to find the problem…hopefully.

"What were you doing, Rose?"

"I was at the range practicing my shots and I _maaay_ have reloaded too quickly." She sheepishly chuckled and fidgeted.

The light found something. With a pair of tweezers I wiggled it out and cautiously pulled it out. "I think I found your problem, Rose. A bullet casing was caught in the chamber's lock. No major damage." Maybe I'll give her a break. After I reloaded the magazine and engaged the safety, I gave it back to her. "Next time don't chamber the bullets too quickly or another jam will happen."

"Thank you, father," she put away the rifle and came up to me, curious about something and leaning forward in front of me. The scar, it has to be. "How did you get that scar?" Rose asked me innocently, much like the child she technically is.

I was hesitant to talk about it. After I got it, I told myself that it was a Fallen who pierced through my helmet during my earlier days as a 'Guardian.' "Can you accept this, Rose? What I'm about to tell you?"

She shook her head eagerly. "I'm ready, father."

By the Traveler, Rose is eager to learn and listen! What did Vesper do to her in the Afterlife? Hopefully she didn't dote on her and spoil her. She did say she'll probably do that if she has a daughter, after all. In any case, might as well get it over with…

I took a deep breath, "Your mother did this to me," right before Rose could say anything, I stopped her. "She wasn't angry or anything. We never fight to the point that we hurt each other. Your mother told you how she ended up in the Afterlife, right?"

"Mother told me that you executed her but because you were ordered strictly by the Cyphers," Wow, I didn't expect Vesper to be open about how she died. Maybe persistence got the best of her. "Father, I don't hate you. I just wanted to let you know."

Another smile formed on my lips. "Well, she wasn't herself when I was ordered to kill her. The Darkness corrupted her, turned her against me. I don't know why or how but I know she's not the type to turn against someone like me," Rose sat down on the stool next to me and paid attention, intrigued by this story. "I was chasing her and she took me by surprise, slashed my face with her knife."

"And that's how you got your scar." Rose concluded and I nodded. She hugged me as though she knew how much remembering the past hurt me, taking me by surprise. "Does Aunt Lightning know about me, father?"

Do you ever feel that moment when a symbolistic mirror cracks and shatters when a harsh realization hits you? Yeah, that's the best I could describe my thought process when she asked me that question. Lightning, finding out she's an aunt… Knowing her, she'd probably freak out, violently shake me and strangle me at the same time, _and_ ask me, in her outrageously shocked voice, how the hell her niece rapidly grew up in the four years since I killed both my fiancée and daughter when Rose should be a _baby_ at this point in time. My face paled when the thought of her doing what I imagined would actually happen.

My hand ruffled up her hair playfully. "I don't think now would be a good time. She'll freak out when she finds out she's an aunt and strangle _me_ if I told her here and now." Rose smiled as childishly as she could.

"I didn't know Aunt Lightning would react like that! Isn't she supposed to be serious and brooding like Uncle Cloud?"

I lost it there and now when she mentioned the idea of Cloud being her uncle. Right as I was having a glass of water did she say that!

 _"_ _Uncle?"_ I sputtered right after I nearly choked on my drink.

My daughter nodded. "I saw them hugging right after you left to report to the Vanguard."

"Did they?" Looks like I have some dirt on my beloved sister after all… That pretty much confirms me and the others' bet that Tohsaka has romantic feelings for Cloud. Leon and Aqua better cough up the Glimmer when I tell them! "Hey, if she catches you during that moment act like you saw nothing. You don't want to be on her bad side."

"Scout's honor, father!" She gave me a two finger salute.

Neo looked up from his bowl and barked with Rose, agreeing with her. He already had encountered Tohsaka when she was angry and hopefully he'll warn Rose if it happens. "I'm counting on you to warn her when Lightning's angry, Neo. Don't let me down." Once again, he got the message and barked.

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

Seriously, this has to be the _last time_ I to run through training with a bunch of newbies who didn't learn their lesson from day one they came to the Ancient Vanguard! How the hell could Rez put up with these guys when he trains them?! They're like hyperactive children that just won't listen!

The drill today is rather simple for this group of new Guardians that wanted to be the best they could be in the field. A simple Clash match in Bannerfall—overseen by me instead of Shaxx—between the rookies and newbies; no Supers, only their guns and abilities. When I mean rookies, I mean the Guardians that are still learning after being around for a few days or weeks. The newbies? Literally the ones who come here when they first arrive at the Tower.

The scores I'm seeing between these two groups is completely disheartening. The rookies were trumping over the newbies, _even when I said to take it easy on them._ It's enough to make me cringe. Either I hammered the essence of survival too hardly into their heads or they're just trying to show off. Really badly. I even saw one of the rookie Huntresses backstab a Warlock that just spawned. I facepalmed and groaned dejectedly when that Huntress started slaughtering everyone else that homed in on her. When I saw the score was 25100 to 920, I felt like smashing my head against the terminal. Dammit… This is enough! Even Shaxx would be disgraced from watching this match! My hand went over the switch for the intercom and flipped it.

"Enough! I'm calling this one!" My hand hit the 'Mercy Rule' button and the match was over. This was cringeworthy that no one won. After the end match horn blared and the two teams met up at the center of the arena I transmatted down there pissed off. "You! What the hell are you trying to do, killing them just as they spawn and wiping out the rest?" The Huntress in question looked at me innocently but I knew better. "I told all of you to take it easy on them! What the hell happened to that?!"

"Sir, with all due respect, you didn't mention—"

I pointed a finger at her angrily. "Shut it, Elena-12! I'm not having any more of this behavior from you so either learn to listen to instructions or _don't_ at all!" Breathe, Nero… Don't look like the bad guy here. Or rather, a Guardian that's starting to fall under the influence of the Taken… All it took was a few seconds to cool off. "What is the point of me allowing you to practice with fellow inexperienced Guardians if you aren't going to listen when I say 'take it easy on them'?"

The Huntress known as Elena-12 remained silent. Good enough. I need to relieve my stress over this match… The last one I oversaw was satisfactory with how I wanted it to turn out. Sighing, I pinched the bridge of my nose and faced the newbies. "You guys did the best you could. Come back tomorrow and I'll arrange another match with different rookies. Dismissed." The team of newbies saluted and left the arena. "As for you, back to running through the basic drills a hundred times in a row! Now! And no slacking off or I'll double it for you!"

They left my sight to resume their training drills as punishment for not listening to me and _finally_ I was able to get a peace of mind. Great, now it's just me. I slumped against the tree near the railing and sighed heavily. Staring out into the afternoon sun was relaxing to me, my hand flipping my knife as I was mesmerized by the sun. At least its not a drill day for the Ancient Vanguard otherwise I'd have to ask one of my pals to cover for me. Elena-12 was extremely sassy but shows promise to be a great Guardian…if she ever learns honor and not picking on the weak too often! Note to self: keep Elena-12 out of the Crucible for a while and away from newbies.

"Rough day at the office, babe?" I looked up and saw Reaper sitting on a branch and looking down at me. She leapt down and sat next to me tossing me a thermos of what I'd assume to be coffee or tea.

"Tell me something I don't know, Reaper."

A finger tapped against her chin while she brought out her own thermos. "Well, while you were busy watching the rookies and newbies fight, I caught one of them doing that vulgar thing to a newbie. I think they call it 'teabagging'?"

The mere mention of that term was even worse than watching the match. Its humiliating! Worse than when things didn't go as planned or somebody stopping you right as you were about to bring destruction! Now that I mention it, this must be how villains feel when their plans have been thwarted by the hero of the story…

"Worse than what Elena did?"

Reaper hummed. "Very. It was the same newbie over and over again."

"And you did nothing about it?"

"I strung him up and slapped a Flux Grenade on him." Well, that explains the 'death by the Architects' on that Guardian.

Another sip from the thermos. "Thanks, Reaper. You're the best."

"No problem," she snuggled up to me and I threw an arm across her shoulders. "Eroxs is a part of our team?"

"Yeah. As a matter of fact, she's next on my agenda for drills today." Reaper raised an eyebrow when I revealed 'Eroxs's gender. "Don't worry, I'm not falling for her anyway. Not when I have you. I know she's skilled in her own right but it wouldn't hurt to teach her more."

Reaper hummed and rested her head against my chest, setting her thermos aside. "Don't you think her behavior around you is odd?"

To the eyes of the uninformed, then that would be reasonable. But I haven't told Reaper about 'Eroxs' being my daughter and I don't think I will anytime soon. Hell, I'm worried she'll think I'm a player and dump me! "I'm sure she has a good reason. As long as it's manageable then we'll be fine. I'm assuming she needs a mentor to teach her." She lightly punched me in the chest. "Ouch!"

"I'll be watching your practice match. Count on it."

The alert for when a match is about to start blared out in the arena. Must be my practice drill with Rose. How time flies. We looked at each other lovingly and as though this would be our last moment together. And thus we broke away from each other and I stood up, helmet constructing and hiding my face. Everything is ready. Swords? Check. Guns? Check. Reaper put on her Celestial Nighthawk and transmatted to the control tower overseeing this match. Huh, I thought she'd stick to the shadows like her namesake.

I gripped the hilt of Duskdancer tightly. She'll be here soon. Hopefully she remembered what I told her to do and say because I haven't told everyone else in the Fireteam about her. A father-daughter dance. This ought to be fun. Let's see what Rose is fully capable of.

* * *

 **A/N: Here's another non-violent chapter for you guys. For now I want to focus on having Spectre and his daughter bond like they should but rest assured there will be fights coming in the near future. I got in what I wanted so that's what matters to me. Plus, I wouldn't call this practice match between father and daughter a 'fight' but rather a 'test'.**

 **Until next time, Guardians.**


	35. II-XX: Glassy Skies

**_Chapter XX: Glassy Skies_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _1951 Hours, December 22, 2714_

 _Bannerfall, the Tower, Earth_

I give up. That's it!

So here I am playing on the defensive and parrying Rose's scythe that _also turns into a lance and halberd_ , trying to make sure she doesn't accidentally decapitate her father. And when I do get the chance of attacking, I'd hit a decoy she created from thin air instead of her!

Having seen how my own daughter can handle herself, even in a one-versus-one match, there was nothing else I could do but forfeit the match. Her speed and reflexes are on an entirely different level! Even she has her mother's quick thinking and my code of honor! At least she stops herself before the blade would go anywhere near my neck.

I planted Duskdancer in the ground and knelt after being kicked away from her, panting heavily from this entire father-daughter dance. Me, an Excalibur and son of Trionus Pendragon, beaten by my own child?! The humiliation I would face if this was back in the Academy…! My pride felt as though it was shattered into pieces, even if this was a mock match. If I were to lose my pride, I would rather lose it to my daughter or sister.

Rose was a spiral of petals and ashes before she was in front of me a few feet apart, scythe posed as though she was a mentor waiting for me to get back on my feet. "Is that all you got, Spectre?" She asked me without her voice filter. Yeah, it _is_ weird when your own daughter calls you by your name and not 'father' or 'dad'.

"I think… I'll call it a match this time." The defeat screen appeared on my HUD with my own daughter claiming the victory. She held out her hand and I took it, getting back on my feet with her help. "And I thought you needed an evaluation of your combat capability. Turns out _I'm_ the one who needs it!"

"You didn't do as bad as I thought."

"I fought fast enemies before but you're on a different level. Pair that with your decoy illusions and you could just as easily be my enemy."

Rose reached for her helmet and took it off, shaking her hair out. "At least I'm on your side. I don't have what it takes to be your enemy." Thank the Traveler that she isn't an enemy! If any of my family were to turn against me, my own mental state would probably collapse even more than me killing Hayden.

"You're good, Eroxs." Reaper transmatted next to me and protectively linked an arm with mine. My heart sank a bit. I didn't know that Reaper would be worried about me leaving her. Guess that makes two of us. "But between the three of us, he's mine."

Reaper folded her scythe and crossed her arms. "I have no intentions of taking him away from you. It's strictly a mentor-apprentice relationship."

Reaper cheered up and looked at me. Nice save, Rose. The plan's working to say the least. And the plan? Rose has to act like she isn't my daughter when around the uninformed. She's against it but they can't know. Not yet.

"Hey, can we talk alone?"

Back to Gloomsville. As much as I'd like to be alone with her, the thought of Reaper knowing about who 'Eroxs' really is frightens me. Try as I may to get the thought out of my head, I have a feeling it won't go away soon enough. Traveler help me in this situation…

"Shaxx, cancel the rest of my training matches for the rest of the afternoon. Something came up." Hopefully he got the message. "You're done for today, Eroxs. Run along now."

She nodded and left Bannerfall. Shaxx won't let anyone stay in the arenas after the match was over so we took our leave as well. Our walk was silent for the most part, but her affectionate touch was speaking for itself. Guardians that saw me and Reaper together was, for lack of a better word, just unsettling. Was this what father had to deal with with Teshin and Master Asada, my extreme survival mentor back at the Academy, knowing his love with mother? It must be. Even I can sense that some of the Guardians were afraid of me even more than Lightning.

Reaper and I retreated to my quarters and I locked the door behind me ignoring Rez's calls of me 'getting it on'. Bastard… Doesn't he have a shift in training matches by now?

"What's wrong, Reap?" I saw her eyes widen in surprise but then gloomy. Something's definitely bugging her, and it certainly isn't about Rose. Good.

She was at the edge of my bed and I sat down next to her. "It's just…how could you have the fortitude to keep going? Don't you ever think about your health, mental and physical?"

"If I didn't then I would probably be locked up in a coma for Traveler knows how long?" Our gazes met and my hands were folded. "Reap, believe it or not, but I'm not as stable as you think."

"I know. Your aura is reflecting what you said."

Thought I was one to have something to hide. "And I believe you that you're an aura reader. I sensed something different about you," my hand was on top of hers and caressed the back of her hand. "Look, if you're still feeling 'tainted' by falling in love with me, don't be. I'm a Guardian of Equilibrium, despite being raised among Dark Knights and fighting like one of them."

"That's a mouthful to say, don't you think? Isn't there a shorter term for 'Guardian of Equilibrium'?"

The thought hasn't crossed my mind for a good while. Guardians were warriors of the Traveler, blessed with Light and given extraordinary power. That I know already. But were there ones who were blessed with Darkness to fight for the Traveler before my father started the Dark Knights? The Warlock Halls barely have a record of when the Guardians came to be, and so did the Archives with the Conclave. Honestly, I'm not that worried about finding a shorter term for 'Guardian of Equilibrium.'

"Look, I know something is bothering you. You can tell me anything."

Reaper looked at me and I saw the glint of pain in her eyes. Not the physical type of pain.

"Spectre… were you in love with someone else?"

Oh hell. Don't panic, don't panic…! Argh, should I tell her or lie?! She might even know something's up from the moment we got together! What do I do, what do I do?! She's even giving me a look that put my back against the wall with no way out!

 _"_ _Spectre…"_ Vesper's melodic voice reached my thoughts. _"Don't lie to her. 'A lie hurts even more than the truth in the long run', remember?"_ Her soothing voice calmed my nerves and I could envision she was here with me. _"She needs to know, even about Rose. I'm sure she'll understand."_

But was I ready to spill the truth? For the most part, no. But Vesper is right. I can't keep lying to Reaper about my love life or it may ruin our relationship in the long run. Breathe in, count to four. Breath out, count to four… You can do this, Spectre. You're a Pendragon, so stand up for the family name! I can't believe I'm giving myself this serious of a pep talk…

My hand in my jacket's pocket came out of hiding and I stared at my engagement ring. "I did, but it was a while ago."

"What happened?"

"She…was my childhood friend. Someone who shared the same thing of being born with half Light, half Darkness," What the hell? That's not cutting to the chase, dammit! "Four years ago, I proposed to her and we were on the way to being married. But, I was ordered by the Cyphers to execute her because she was showing signs of corruption. They were against having Dark Knights forming relationships like being a couple. So, I had to track her down for hours until I found her. Back to the beginning where we met. Vesper wasn't herself; the corruption caught hold of her almost completely. It was like she was possessed by a demon. She attacked me, resulting in my scar. I killed her against my will." Before I knew it, the First Curse hovered before me from its place on my bedside table and I took it in my hands. "Vesper was one hell of a sharpshooter and a gunsmith. She built some custom weapons for me and Lightning. This handcannon was the last weapon she built. As a present for me being the spearhead of the Cyphers' Absolution Directive. And I killed her with it."

"I…I didn't know. I'm sorry, forget I asked."

"Don't be sorry. This was my burden to bear. I kept this from you because I was afraid you'd think I was just asking for attention and maybe a player."

She looked at me and I could see forgiveness. Just the same as Vesper did that day we met in the Afterlife. Her finger traced my scar from my fiancée reassuringly and made me look at her. Reaper smiled to the best of her ability as she could.

"This is a lot to take in, Spectre. But I'm not thinking of you as a player."

"Thank you, Reaper." Now begs the question of whether or not to reveal to her my daughter. Telling her about Vesper is a lot for her to take in and Rose may overwhelm her. "That's why I do what I do now; to make sure no one else close to me dies. Even if I go in head-first guns blazing."

"Was she better than me?"

"Don't say that. Comparing yourself to Vesper won't help the both of us," I put aside the First Curse and look at her in the eye. "Both of you are similar to one another. You remind me of her but you're not Vesper. You're yourself, no one else."

She sat on my lap and rested her head against my chest. The so-called 'Predator' being soft with her marked prey that she would love. A Huntress nailing herself a dragon. It's poetic, really. As a hand strokes her hair and my chin resting on the top of her head, I could feel the blur between reality and memories return. Reaper _does_ act like Vesper after all…

"Did you ever let go of the pain? Found redemption for what you've done?" Reaper mumbles as she relaxed from my hand on her head.

"It's not easy for me. My hands are stained with the blood of my best friend and allies before Vesper, so can you imagine how hard it could be?"

She hummed and both of her hands held my engagement ring-bearing hand so she could get a closer look at it. "The craftsmanship…it's so beautiful. Did Vesper make it?"

"A friend of mine back home made them. His craft is making armor with extremely elegant designs fit for a champion. Like the Ruin Wings and Mark 44 Stand Asides. Making rings like this wasn't that hard for him."

"I assume a favor?"

"No. He knew that I wanted to marry her so he did it for me rather than having to make them myself."

She turned her head to face me and I brushed some of her locks away from her face. Reaper's sadness was dissipating quickly, I could sense it. The burden that was on my shoulders…it felt like it melted away when I revealed it to Reaper. For a long time, I thought no one could help me cope with her death, not even the rest of the _kazoku_. They did help, but not to the degree I felt with Reaper when I told her about it. Maybe the phoenix-dragon that I was associated with was starting to give me hope again.

"I won't let you die, Reaper. Because right now, you're what matters for me to protect."

"So you're letting go of the guilt?"

Honestly, I don't know. Am I really letting go of it or am I slowly doing it? I know I'm not cut out to be a true Dark Knight by the Cyphers' standards, but that isn't what I am. I could care less if they kicked me out for good alongside Lightning and the others. At least the other factions will have a leveled battleground amongst each other. Because for a long time my faction of the Dark Knights, Red Veil, was close to being the strongest faction out of all the rest. And it was because of me. Or rather, my subclass as an Excalibur. None of the other factions have their Excaliburs to fight against Red Veil since none of their Dark Knights were worthy of such a subclass. In a nutshell, an Excalibur is a trump card to any faction. That's what they believe but I'm not some weapon they can just swing and order around. Not after the bullshit they put me and my family through.

"Maybe not completely, but right now I want to forget the guilt."

Reaper lightly laughs and our noses touch. My hands cradle her face and my thumbs caress her cheeks. "I can think of a few ways to help with that."

Remembering our oath to take it slow, I merely grinned. "Oh do tell." This time around, I took the lead and leaned in to kiss her. As expected from her, she sighed contently and moved forwards deepening the kiss.

Vesper, I hope you can forgive me.

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

"I was wondering how long it'd take for you to get over here." Lightning sourly muttered, giving me her signature death stare and leaning against the railing of the Traveler's Walk. Me? Pretty sure I look like a tornado ran by me and left me disgruntled. Don't get any bright ideas either. Reaper and I only had a make out session to relieve some of the guilt. So do me a favor and get your head out of the gutter.

"So bite me, sis," I say throwing my arms over the railing. "Why, did you and the others put up a bet or something?"

"You and Reaper. You're jumping bases too quickly compared to you and Vesper. Why?"

"Might as well do it before I die."

"What are you talking about?"

I turned to face my beloved sister, face away from the setting sun. "If I die, how else would people remember me besides from being the best of the best?"

Lightning had a glint of denial in her eyes. "No, you're not thinking of—"

"You're right, I'm not. Not yet. But if it ever does happen, I don't want you to be the only Pendragon left alive. I know you would crack under pressure from such a burden on your shoulders." Admittedly, this isn't coming out the way I want it to be. "You could've been an aunt, Light."

Silence. Taking a deep breath, I figured that Lightning was still processing the idea. _Real_ smooth, dumbass… Go dig myself a grave, why don't I? Now I fear that Lightning will actually strangle me. I can see the tombstone now: 'Here lies Nero Pendragon: loving brother and father killed by his sister for telling her she's an aunt.'

"Was Vesper…?"

"Maybe she was. I don't know for sure, aside from seeing her not feeling well in the weeks after New Year's." I said 'mournfully', hopefully rebounding from letting it slip through my mouth. "Then again, you probably wouldn't have heard of it from me that I proposed to Vesper. At least Leon told you when I couldn't."

"I…I'm not cut out to be an aunt if she was alive, Nero. Not after what happened to me."

"C'mon Tohsaka, you were there for me when we were kids, remember? After mother died and Teshin wouldn't care for us as often as she would?"

"This is us as adults, not kids. But if I was an aunt, could I control my anger around them?" She held out a hand and the ethereal claw outlined itself around her hand. "What if they were bratty and get scared of me when they see how much of a freak I am now?"

There was no denying what the Perrin Sequence did to her, made her into this mess of a Dark Knight that gave her two subclasses. The bastards…I'll never forgive what they did. But that was in the past. Lightning's doing her best to cope with it. And at least she was satisfied with killing the man responsible.

"You may never know, sis. Maybe they're curious about their family members and the people they care about."

"Why are you bringing this up, Nero?"

My chin was against the railing. "No reason in particular. Just trying to live my life before I'm forced to kick the bucket one of these days." I felt my shoulder be patted and I looked at my sister. Oh boy, it's her sisterly serious stare. Brace yourself, Spectre…

"I won't let you die, brother. Not as long as you and the rest of us have a war to finish."

You may never know, sis. You may never know… I could die before the war against the Taken ends, hell, maybe before I get to see the reunion of Dark Knights and Guardians. But at least she's giving me a little morale support. That's what matters at least. Mentally, I breathed a sigh of relief when I stopped myself from telling her that she has a niece among us.

"I know sis, I know. Promise me that you won't do something completely stupid that'll endanger you. That's the last thing I need happening." Actually, scratch that. The worst I need happening is the Taken corrupting me into a Taken Dark Knight _right now_.

"And you have to promise that you don't do something completely ridiculous and idiotic without giving me a heads up."

Like I heard that a million times. Tohsaka, you practically hammered that into my head for as long as I can remember. Of course I won't do something behind your back because you're a sister that deeply cares for me and the others underneath that harshness.

…

…

…Ah, what the hell? I'll probably do it again for one last time. When? I don't know. Depends on how bad it is. It's like Teshin said: 'There will be many battles on the road you walk, and there will be those you must face alone.' For someone who's my adoptive father, he's as much of a hermit as I thought. Not that I had any issues with it. As much as I don't like going behind her back, there are — and there _will_ — be things I have to face on my own. Including the Stalker. My path is mine to walk; no one else's.

"Deal." I held out a fist. "For old time's sake, sis?"

Lightning looked at me and then at my fist. I was hoping she wouldn't forget how we keep our promises. The last time we did this has to be twenty-one years ago. Lightning and I often fist bump to keep our promises, and we did it _a lot_ growing up. Even our little bets back then.

She looked at me in the eyes and faintly smiled before it became more obvious. Finally I can breathe a sigh of relief. Good to see that some of the Lightning I know is still there. Even when Lightning was battle-hardened, at least she didn't change completely.

"For old time's sake, bro." She lightly bumped her fist against mine and we shared a smile, knowing that some part of the old me was also here. "For the family name and the Dark Knights? To free them from the Cyphers?"

"For the family name and the Dark Knights."

* * *

The Stalker punished themselves for not taking advantage of when Spectre was downed. For not taking care of the Hatchling. For _running_ from the battle. They roared in absolute rage as they swung the massive sword into one of the plentiful Taken Knights. The Knight was pulled into a black hole upon its death and Darkness seethed from their hand like smoke, swirling and raging completely out of control. The Stalker planted the sword into the blackness of the area and knelt, panting aggressively.

 ** _"You have not failed me or your King, my Stalker,"_** the Right Hand — or what remained of him in a sphere of Taken energy — spoke, appearing before the Taken Dark Knight. **_"You will get another chance. He will be at his weakest, at the brink of despair. And only then will you have your chance."_**

The Stalker took a breath and meditated before the sphere of their master. Yes, he was right. Their first meeting with the son of Trionus Pendragon proved something; he was starting to break, just as the Right Hand wanted. Like a flock of vultures fighting over a carcass, the Darkness and Taken within the Stalker continued to fluctuate between fighting and working together.

All they had to do was wait for the perfect opportunity.

* * *

 **A/N: And there we have it. I knew that eventually this had to happen so I might as well have done it. We will still take a break from fighting, maybe for another chapter or two.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XIX): Yeah, I know the feeling although I don't know which is more painful: being on the losing side when Mercy Rule is declared, or waiting for a long time for it to be activated. As much as I have standards, snaring an easy victory with Mercy Rule doesn't feel satisfying at the least.**

 **I'll see you guys in the next chapter, so in the meantime, enjoy Iron Banner while it lasts!**


	36. II-XXI: Homecoming

**_Chapter XXI: Homecoming_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _0317 Hours, December 23, 2714_

 _Guardian Quarters, The Tower, Earth_

I've thought about home one too many times since I came to the Tower. Coming back as a hero when I brought ruin to the Guardians by infiltration. The praise, the atmosphere of doing the 'right thing', it sickened me. It wasn't the right thing but the Cyphers insisted that it was, to get revenge for our exile. Maybe they knew I'd somehow screw up the mission and sent me here to be executed by the Guardians. Guess they were wrong, even if they factored in that I would gain their trust.

It's time people knew about the Absolution Directive, the operation that I was the spearhead to. In a nutshell, it was an infiltration mission so that Red Veil can learn everything the Vanguard were up to and ambush them during major operations. I would feed them information about a big operation like a vital Strike and they would ambush the Guardians and eliminate them without a trace of an ambush. And I indirectly caused the deaths of many Guardians. Even their weakness so that we could exploit them. No wonder I feel guilty for all of this. And to add more to it all, I was ordered to kill the Vanguard when they were at their weakest. But I couldn't find the strength to do it; they weren't as evil and corrupted as the Cyphers said they were.

Another day has passed and another day of rest from the battlefield. Dinner was relatively quiet, a majority of the team off in our plans for the Taken War. Leon, Silver, Aqua, and Rez were debating over ways to effectively use the Stealth Drive. Lightning was picking her food while she was (I'm assuming) thinking about how she would've been off as an aunt. Reaper was still taking in the truth about my love life. And last but not least, Cloud ate little and thought about his old buddy. Zack, I think was his name?

So where does that leave me? I merely took my dinner and went back in my quarters and had another conversation with Rose. She told me that she managed to stay away from Adam since I know his tendency to pick on the weak. Believe me, that started after I humiliated him in the Battle Royale and left him without a voice. All I hear from him when we cross paths are growls of hostility but Dragunus would easily take care of it should it escalate beyond glares. Good enough for me because I think he's better off growling rather than talking.

That and she made rather quick friends with a resident newcomer Fireteam. As inclined as I was to ask who, I figured that it had to be someone she can relate to. Someone who is just as lively and as proficient with a scythe and a heavy-hitting scout rifle. Yeah, Rose's scout rifle packed a really nasty punch and left a huge dent on my armor before it regenerated and felt like an anvil fell on me. I'm talking about Fireteam RWBY. Ruby and Rose, it's a little humorous seeing as Ruby's last name is 'Rose'. I wasn't going to stop her from being friends with her, hell, I was in favor of it. They seem to get along well like they were sisters.

As I toss and turn subtly in my bed, home kept nagging me to think about it. It didn't help that I was awake the entire time and I don't think I'll get any rest soon. Going home wasn't exactly a heartwarming thought given all the bullshit I faced growing up. There were some good times here and there but it was horrid. A constant war between factions for as long as I can remember and every day after my Academy days spent for war. In between the warring was where the _kazoku_ and I got together and had time to ourselves instead of preparing for the next battle; we did that ahead of time. Of course, most of my time was spent with Vesper in between operations.

Teshin…my adoptive father after mother passed away. Might've sucked as a guardian but he was one hell of an instructor. He taught me a lot of survival techniques but the most defining was teaching me my dual wielding with swords. Well, more like refining it since my technique was amateurish at best. Better than nothing, right? Where he was my extreme survival mentor, Master Asada was to my sister's and let me tell you, she was like the sister we never had but I'll save that for another time.

"Dammit…" I mumble as I turn to face my glass door leading to my balcony. "I don't want to go back but…" it was like someone back home put a chip in my head and spammed the 'recall' button. As invasive as the idea is it won't leave me alone. Sighing, I sat up and contemplated on the situation that forbade me from sleep.

Was I ready to go home, knowing that I have a traitor's mark painted on my back like a bullseye? Maybe not back to Red Veil but who else would I turn to? Not the Perrin Sequence after what they did. Steel Meridian? Screw that, I'm not having a psychopathic Pyromaniac try to burn me alive with a flamethrower and then rip my head off to be put on a shelf as a trophy. New Loka? Not a chance with those 'purifying all with nature' extremists. Cephalon Suda? Like hell I'll work with an A.I praised like the Traveler that thinks that all enemies are waste that should be disposed of.

I look to my side. Reaper was there sound asleep like a child. She wanted to spend the night with me like we were a married couple and I agreed even with Rez still continuing his bullshit. From the moonlight, she is mesmerizing to behold. Her brown hair shone like gemstones and her beauty became even more beautiful in the moonlight. Reaper was like a goddess now that I look at her. My hand reached out and I softly stroke her hair. Comparing her to Vesper was — and is — a bad idea right off the bat but I just can't help but think of how it would've been having an actual family with Reaper. Would our kids be more Guardian than Guardian of Equilibrium? Gah, what was I thinking? It's not like that time came yet. I already have my hands full with Rose and I don't think the Vanguard is willing to let me take care of another child. Rose can handle herself but she needs parental supervision from time to time.

Stroking her hair one last time before kissing her softly on the cheek, I get up from the bed. Seeing her react to the kiss in her sleep was nostalgic yet new. She stirred a bit and giggled a bit before she mumbled 'I love you too' like she was my wife. A smile crept on my face and I leaned close to her ear, whispering, "I love you."

As I got closer to my balcony door, my armor started assembling without making a sound. A shroud of Darkness covered me and formed into my armor, ready for combat but not yet ready to be redeployed. The door opened and I stepped out, taking in the winter night and the door slid shut. My hands grip the railing and I stare out towards the moon. As much as it doesn't feel right to go back, something has been bothering me since my fight with the Stalker. How could a Dark Knight be Taken? Was it the same process as Guardians? No, it couldn't be. Most of our psyches are fortified to take on the temptations the Darkness may bring and to resist them. We're not of the Light, so that could already bring the process one step closer. There has to be something else that they have to destroy…

 **"** **Are you seriously trying to think about it, Spectre?"**

"What, going back to the Cyphers? No. I'm not. I just want answers."

 **"** **Answers regarding a new threat that Teshin may not have any knowledge about? Sounds like a completely fun plan."** My A.I retorts sarcastically. **"Do you even remember the last traitor that tried to return home?"**

Yeah, that was some time before I left for the Absolution Directive. Even I can recall it exactly down to every detail when it happened. That traitor that Primus was talking about was in his ship on the way back to Red Veil until our anti-jumpship batteries shot it down into a raging ball of flaming twisted metal and scrap even when he was pleading that he hasn't done anything traitorous while in his ship. The Cyphers didn't listen; they knew right before he arrived in our airspace. _This_ is why they scare me, since they can know what you've been up to before you can report. Many of us suspected that they had spies watching us and others saying that they used the Darkness to find out. One way or another, it still is creepy to think about.

"So what, you think I'll be shot down like that guy?"

 **"** **It's a high probability,"** the holographic cube next to me 'shrugs'. **"Even if we don't identify ourselves or pass by undetected, they'll know it's us."**

So, not even a HALO jump can save my life. What'd they do, amp up security after my betrayal or has it been that way and I haven't noticed?

"Bad idea, then?"

 **"** **Bad idea. I know the thought's been on your mind but I, for one, am against you going back to Red Veil just for answers."**

Scoffing, I turn to face my A.I and lean against the railing. "And what, just find out for myself how the hell a Taken Dark Knight is created? When _I'm_ slowly undergoing the process?"

 **"** **On second thought, that's an even worse idea,"** Primus sighed. **"Then again, there's someone that loves a bad idea and it works out unexpectedly."**

"I thought you were supposed to keep me out of danger, MI6."

 **"** **Well, out of** ** _any_** **dangerous ideas you can cook up in your head. I was programmed to make sure that I'm against a fatal idea, as per design choice by Teshin."**

Guess a human outsmarted a machine this time around. A bit of pride swelled up and I secretly smirked.

My hand pulled out Skyfall from its holster and I emptied the revolver-like cylinder from the rounds. Near the cylinder where the bullets would be held were symbols that ranged from a simple line, a dragon's wing, to a wolf's head. Banshee engraved these so that I could keep track of which bullet would trigger the weapon's unique ability. Think of it like a matching game. If the dragon's wing appeared next to the chambered round when I first chamber, then it would mean that it had to be the symbol next to it that was chambered. After the spin and I see the dragon's wing in the exact same spot as it was before I spin then the bullet is guaranteed to be the killing shot to Majors. If not, well there goes my lucky shot.

I know I haven't been using this gun for a while but against the Dark Knights is like going in with only one bullet in my guns. The cylinder full of bullets was put back in and I slammed it back into place, and then I spun it like I was in a game of Russian roulette.

 **"** **You're still thinking of going back there, aren't you?"**

"You know me well, Primus."

 **"** **For someone that's resisting the Taken you're still you,"** my partner dryly stated. **"Ugh, fine. Someone needs to make sure you're still alive if we get shot down from flight."**

"I bet they don't know that I'm not a hundred percent Dark Knight."

 **"** **If they do know, we're screwed all right."**

He didn't sound convinced about tagging along with me. "I'll get a new processor for you if they know as a consolation."

 **"** **Fine. But after this** ** _and_** **if we still live, this is the last suicide mission that I allow to slip past my programming. Deal?"**

"Deal," not like it'll kill us here and now but what kind of a choice do I have? "We'll be leaving soon."

 **"** **Should I leave a message for the others?"**

"I have a feeling we'll receive one hell of a welcome so yeah. Leave a message for them." As Primus started creating the message, I stare out towards the moon one last time.

Just knowing that home was on the other side of the planet may not put me at ease but I have to. I may not know how long I will be gone from the Tower and not leaving a message will put my friends and family in a panic. Not like when I left on short notice four years ago. It won't happen again.

The Cyphers stole my birthright as leader of the Dark Knights, and I intend to burn their rule down so that the Conclave can finally put an end to this war amongst themselves. From the ashes of their rule, I will return order to all Dark Knights just as my father did. My allegiance belongs to the Conclave; not Red Veil. Never again.

Primus finished composing the message and I check to make sure it won't be obvious where I will be but not too subtle. Good enough. I tapped the inside of my gauntlet where a button was hidden. A few seconds later a sudden gush of wind hit my face. My _Xiphos_ hovered in front of me, nose of the ship pointed towards the stars. It was never docked in the hangar; it was hiding in Bannerfall with its stealth drive cloaking it. The stealth drive was online and the thrusters barely made a sound as the underbelly of the ship opened up.

Time to go.

But I stopped myself from entering the ship. Right as one of my greaves' soles was against the railing, my head turned back. Reaper was still asleep. It felt wrong to leave her without letting her know where I'm going. Rose too. Second thoughts flooded my head. Should I save this for another time? No. I _need_ to get some answers. There's no turning back now.

Even so with my conflicting thoughts, I hop into the ship and climb my way to the cockpit. The opening in the underbelly sealed shut and I strap in to my seat. A couple of buttons and switches and the _Xiphos_ crept away from the quarters without making as much of a sound and went from hover mode to flight mode. Primus already inputted the coordinates back home so I have some control at takeoff.

As the hull of the ship was aligned with my balcony, my hand pressed against the glass-like covering the moment my eyes saw Reaper still asleep in my bed. "Sorry Reap…" My eyes held back any form of tears and my hands grip the throttle and joystick. Before I knew it, I jerked the throttle forward and held back the joystick.

As my ship pointed towards the stars at a tilted angle, I felt like I was thrown back into my seat as the _Xiphos_ jolted forward and set off on my destination.

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

 _0609 Hours, December 23, 2714_

 _Coordinates Unknown, O? B?ti?h ?m?ir?, Earth_

Dawn shone its first few rays of light on the home of the Dark Knights. How any group could live out here in the ruins of such a desolate place is beyond anyone's guess. Cities before the Collapse now laid as ruins, a lost Golden Age memento. Rivers were either dried up or still ran with water, frozen by the winter. Snow blanketed the ruins of a time long forgotten, unveiling both a mesmerizing sight and one that would invoke a warning.

Spectre's _Xiphos_ streaked through the morning skies like an early bird, a trail of its thrusters easily penning through the dawn. He didn't bother to use its warp drive nor go to orbit for faster travel, even when it would put him off the radar. Given that a mild snowstorm was here, autopilot had to adapt to the weather. Out of all the possible ways to get into his faction's territory; using his old Archwing that he hasn't touched for ten years, HALO jump from a high point above their radar, none of them might work. They're all too life threatening!

He stared out towards the view that was before him, a rush of memories flooding his head. Ignoring the memories, he eased down on the throttle and allowed autopilot to take over.

He leaned back in the pilot's seat and folded his arms. "Well, we're here. Home again." Spectre said, his companion over his shoulder in its Ghost shell.

 **"** **It's quiet. Maybe** ** _too_** **quiet."** Primus noted. **"I don't like this one bit, Spectre."**

"Me neither," he checked his ship's radar and broadcast terminal. "We're already in their airspace and they haven't given us at least a warning."

 **"** **Then again, maybe the anti-jumpship battery operators fell asleep on the job?"**

"Very funny."

 **"** **But if they despised you that badly for your betrayal, then I have a good sense that they'll just—"**

An alarm blared from the terminal and a jolt rocked the ship. Spectre sprung in his seat, hands on the controls and scanned the terminal. A graze of a shot hit the right wing's hover stabilizer. He cursed and overridden the autopilot and dodged another shot.

 **"** **Shoot us out of the sky!"** Primus exclaimed and tapped into the _Xiphos_ 's terminals, then relayed the vital information to Spectre's HUD.

Spectre saw his attackers. Three small forms with unimaginably heavy weapons, paired with pairs of wings that appeared mechanical. All three pairs were like jet turbines that had to be extremely heavy yet these three were flying them like they were lightweight! They maneuvered through the sky extremely beautifully, a trio of light inking it crimson like a fine point.

"Three Archwings on our tail. One railgun and two flak cannons. Gotta keep our distance from the flak cannons!"

 **"** **Autopilot's disengaged, Spectre! Let's get the hell out of here!"**

"Might want to hold on to something!" He throttled up and hit the afterburner.

As the _Xiphos_ gained distance from the Archwings, two of them resumed pursuit after the ship and the railgun-wielding Dark Knight stopped and charged the gun. For heavy-looking wings, they could keep pursuit with a ship designed for durability and speed. As the leader lined up the shot with the fast-moving ship, Spectre pulled evasive maneuvers to avoid the flak hitting the ship and throwing off the lock in the process. But the cannons still attempted to bring him down. Not even his barrel rolls and loop de loops could shake them off.

 _"_ _You shouldn't have come back, Sparda!"_ The leader of the trio angrily said. _"We know you betrayed us, you and your_ kazoku _!"_

Spectre thought of responding to the leader but vetoed it and blocked the caller. He remembers the leader wielding the railgun. She was a respected Archwing pilot known for her evasive techniques and making her mark with her railgun no matter how fast her prey was. They crossed Archwings in some tournaments during his Academy days and he almost had her in one match until she clipped his wings with a feint shot. She was that good, even with the Elytron model of the mechanical wings, which was considered for heavy artillery. "Primus, how far is it from the Temple?!"

 **"** **That's it?! All this time and you were headed to the Temple?! Are you insane!?"**

 _"_ _Answer the damn question!"_

 **"** **Five hundred clicks from here! Just gotta get through the Belt for the shortest route!"**

 _Son of a…_ The Belt was treacherous to navigate through. Being a demilitarized zone serving as a reminder that there is no peace between the Dark Knights at this point in time, the zone kept an iron grip in both land and sky with mines and cannons. No one has made it through the Belt without being blown up by either of the two. At least, not to his knowledge. He ran through it in a simulation multiple times before. The farthest he's gone was so close to the end — until one of the enforcer mines blew up right in front of him. He swore that enforcer mine was just a blocking son of a bitch when he wasn't even within its sensors.

"Let's just hope they don't pay attention to two things at once!" Spectre throttled up again, speeding his way to the limits of the Belt with the Archwings in tow.

Whether he made a big mistake or had a bright idea was entirely out of his train of thought. Right as he entered the Belt, he barely had any time to register any form of pattern from the enforcer mines when another flak cannon shot grazed the ship. He dodged a railgun shot and focused on the mines and anti-air cannons' patterns, recalling from memory how the mines seek out their targets and how long it takes for a cannon to fire. Thinking about activating a sonar pulse to reveal the motion sensors of the mines, he turned it on and watched as an array of cones and lines erupt from each mine on his HUD.

 _Please don't be different from the simulation!_ Spectre dived from his current altitude and began weaving around the mines with the Elytrons still in pursuit. So far no enforcer mines. As he pulled insane maneuvers to avoid the sensors and dodging the shots from both Archwings and cannons alike, he wished that his _Xiphos_ was outfitted with anti-pursuit weapons —

Wait.

That's it!

He took a quick glance at his pair of mechanical wings hanging on a deployment pod. As worn and battle-damaged as it is, the damn thing still works! The pod with the Odonata model deployed outside the ship upon his orders but it didn't jettison it as he was not outside his ship. Primus synced the model's mainframe to Spectre's own inside his armor, knowing full well how to do it. A warning blared on his HUD and Spectre knew that it had to be a missile. He took a look at his surroundings. Mines in a crisscrossing pattern and an enforcer mine in place in front of him. Throw in a cannon that is nearly ready to fire and the rest of the mines made the ship cramped through this course. Just as the missile was close to hitting, the Odonata deployed flares and diverted it from target, creating a heavy smoke screen when the rest of the flares detonated into a huge cloud of white phosphorus. Spectre pulled up and skimmed through the trap with the _Xiphos_ on its side, the Odonata returning within the hull of the ship.

Unfortunately, the safe side could not be said for the Elytrons right on the _Xiphos_ 's six. One of them ran through the dense cloud of white phosphorus and found themselves against an enforcer mine. The detonation released extreme amounts of shrapnel and hot metal that jammed the turbines and the rest shredded the Dark Knight to an unrecognizable corpse. As that unlucky victim plummeted to the earth like a rock, the leader of the Archwing team caught up with the one that had the bright idea to not fly through the cloud and worked their way around it and the trap.

Archwings and _Xiphos_ came into contact again when they were nearing the final stretch of the Belt. Enforcer mines were heavy in presence and started to home in on the airborne Dark Knights. Spectre kept up his evasive maneuvers and paid attention to the path of the enforcer mines, even as they can be unpredictable at times. He had to push down on the stick, _Xiphos_ diving into a deep drop, then rolling to the right desperately to avoid an anti-air shot and an enforcer mine lying in wait for him to slip up. Halfway into the roll, he stopped and shot out in a diagonal pattern, just barely avoiding another of the mines and catching one of the wings of the last flak cannon-wielding Elytrons. With no time to watch as the pilot could take a chunk out of the ship, he slammed the aerial brakes and released the caught wing, rolling away into a dive—

As the second Archwing collided with a swarm of enforcer mines that originally tailed the larger ship, a brilliant explosion lighting up in the snowstorm as both pilot and Archwing turned into chunks of metal and flesh. The last Elytron summoned an energy axe from one of her wings and began cutting her way through the mines in a blind rage, enraged over the loss of her team and Spectre being able to outmaneuver her shots. However, there were too many of them for her missile barrage and her evasiveness to take.

 _"Sparrrrrddaaaaaaa!"_ Was her last words over his comms as the enforcers took her life in a giant ball of shrapnel and melted metals. He brought the ship about, shooting up straight past more of the tracking mines and then made it out of the Belt.

"Well, I guess her wings just got…clipped."

 **"Was that even an appropriate time to say that? I know you wanted payback for that feint shot but was that worth it?"**

"Karma, Primus. One word. Karm—"

And in that very second, a violent rumble rocked the ship. The warning alarms began to sound followed by a flood of red lights in the cockpit. Spectre gripped his controls and tried to stabilize the ship. No use. The _Xiphos_ was leaning heavily on a wing and it wasn't looking good for the stabilizers.

 **"We lost our left wing!"**

It began to dive towards the ground at an alarming rate despite his efforts to regain control of his ship. Sweat began to bead on his forehead as he tried to regain equilibrium. A quick glance at the ship's schematics saw the damage done and how it managed to blow the entire wing off.

"An Opticor cannon?!" He knew where they would've been manufactured. Those weapons were designed by the Perrin Sequence for taking down heavily armored targets and rarely ships. For the portable weapon to take on a ship as fortified as the _Xiphos_ , that meant one thing.

It had to be someone from the Conclave.

As the ship spiraled out of control and broke through a cloud in the snowstorm, Spectre could make out a faint silhouette of a mountain range in the distance. He was here, right where he was planning to go to. Though it didn't go exactly as planned, he was coming. Trying to regain balance of the ship was futile and he fastened his harnesses.

"Brace for impact!"

* * *

 **A/N: Welp, another one of these cliffhangers. As promised, this is where we will break away from the bonding moments and where we return to hell. For the chase scene, I would recommend listening to _"The Chase"_ by Antti Martikainen on YouTube.**

 **Prophet: A bit too sudden, don't you think?**

 **Me: Meh, it's the least I can do for a team that had to deal with turmoil all their lives.**

 **Prophet: I think you made it worse.**

 **Me: We'll see.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XX): And thus, the storm begins. Yeah, I can imagine the Vanguard and the Speaker did their best to hide any record of there being any Guardians that use the Darkness for some reason aside from Dredgen Yor. But there are those that could give Darkness-wielding Guardians a good rep to counteract the bad rep it got.**

 **Stay safe out there, Guardians!**


	37. II-XXII: The Conclave

**_Chapter XXII: The Conclave_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _O?d ?ri?i?h E?pi?e, Earth_

 _Unknown time, December 23, 2714_

Well, that was one hell of an entrance.

After the _Xiphos_ crashed, I managed to get out of the wreckage alive and tried to reach the Temple where the Conclave were residing. The last thing I remember was collapsing in the snow from both my injuries and the freezing cold. It was so cold around the mountains that it was like I was in goddamn Antarctica rather than where the Conclave reside. Not even my armor's temperature regulators could keep up with the storm. Why the hell a mountain, for the Traveler's sake?

I know I'm in shelter. Definitely not freezing out in the storm at the mountain, nor am I in another visit to the Afterlife. Where, I have a feeling I'll save for later. Knowing this, it meant one thing. And to confirm it, there's a stench of parasitic spores around. Not the Infested kind of spores, but one from fungi and parasites you'd find in the jungles. There's only one subclass that can utilize this type of parasitic spores and poison that only becomes volatile when activated.

"Argh, son of a bitch…"

"You went too far with the shot, Vergil."

"Ha! I'd like to see you do better with that flimsy bow of yours, Asada!" Another voice entered my ears and upon hearing it, I groaned mentally. Not him… "And plus, how was I supposed to know his ship would have its wing blown off after I fired the cannon?"

"This, coming from a Master relying on technology to survive? Your toys won't save you out there."

"Says the Master who refuses to even use a gun and relies on Tenno-based weapons because you want to respect your mother's wishes."

That's it, I'm intervening before it gets out of hand. Knowing these two from memory, it's going to be a debate that'll last at least half a day!

"Dammit, you two," I managed to say, groggy and in serious need of a drink right now. "Can't you take your 'innovation versus improvisation' argument somewhere else?"

"Well, look who's up and at them."

"Been quite a while, Sparda."

How I wish that name would already be buried in the dirt already. My eyes adjusted and I could see I was in a room. Arms supported my back as my upper body lifted itself with my arms propped. A chamber, how quaint to be in. To be specific, a chamber that holds a number of statues honoring the fallen friends and disciples of my father. Even a warmth from a central fireplace and around the chamber were the only sources of heat in this place. Looking back at the central statue behind me, I saw a statue of my father in his armor that I replicated with his Path to the Light planted before him like the knight he is and will be remembered for.

The Conclave is what remains of the Eximus after their journey out into the Void that changed them to Dark Knights. They were the driving force for the Dark Knights during the Tenno-Dark Knight War, the ones who took risks and made every moment of their planning leave no stone unturned until it was an ensured victory. From what I was told, some of the Eximus that refused to go with my father to the Void had their own strategies to counter the Dark Knights' but it wasn't enough. At the head of the Conclave was Teshin, my father's most trusted friend and my adoptive father. My mentor. Most Dark Knights could easily identify a member of the Conclave by their color choice: all of them shared a black, silver-white, and gold color scheme with a golden emblem on their chestplates and breastplates. That color choice was meant to symbolize how even as Dark Knights, they still follow the Tenno ways and in remembrance to my father.

Nowadays, the Conclave mentors the most worthy of Dark Knights from all across the five factions after the division and remain neutral to the war between the five factions. A handful of them are still around but I haven't seen the rest of the Conclave, since they were often on other planets in meditation or taking back what was once ours. The Conclave remaining stationed on Earth still sought to unify all the factions into the way it was before the division, but that seems to be impossible with the Cyphers at the head of Red Veil's leadership.

"You alright?"

My head turned to Asada's voice and thus I was met with a Dark Knight bearing the colors of black, white, and gold. Her armor was sleek yet armored enough to provide enough of a chance to survive, decorated in a camouflage motif to blend in with a wilderness environment. On top of the armor was a lot of fungal tissue and growth that appeared dead and hardened on the outside, prominently around her neck like a scarf. The emblem of the Conclave was marked clearly on the center of her breastplate, glowing like a small sun.

"Yeah, just shaken up after Master Vergil decided to blow my ship's left wing off." My head pounded a bit and I put a hand on my forehead. Out of the corner of my eye, Asada produced a cup and presented it to me. Thanking her, I took it and downed the contents of the drink.

Big mistake taking it.

Whatever was in my mouth was immediately spitted out in a fine spray and I coughed, wiping my lips with the back of my hand. Dammit, all those times drinking vodka martini made me forget how unappealing Asada's tea was, considering that it was comprised of supposedly 'helpful' ingredients to cure headaches and other ailments in one drink. Either the taste just got worse or the martinis did me a favor and eliminate it from memory. Regardless, my headache is gone and I'm wide awake! Rudely, to add insult to injury!

"What the hell did you put in it this time?" I sputtered as I tried to get the taste out of my mouth.

"The usual, plus feverfew and violet leaves." Asada explained.

"You see, this is why most of us decide to not let Asada make our tea; hers is more like a death concoction than a relaxing drink!"

Master Vergil isn't exactly the type of person you'd expect to be a mentor to so many Dark Knights that he practically is superior to others in his field. In fact, he draws a lot of parallels with Cayde in the 'laid-back, not giving a shit' department. His armor resembles a magician around eight centuries ago in magic shows, to put it simply. And don't expect him to pull rabbits out of his hat of a helmet or any hocus pocus: he pulls you into a pocket dimension where you could be potentially trapped for all eternity or die. On the contrary, Master Vergil is the Conclave's Master regarding technology and weapons similar to my Supra energy machine gun and the Opticor cannon that brought down my _Xiphos_. The only time I saw him act so serious was when he heard that Lightning was captured by the Perrin Sequence.

"Get out of my face before I shove a—"

"Sword up my ass, I get it. Sorry about your ship, Sparda. Sheesh, relax."

It's Cayde all over again. An urge to lash out and choke him was on my mind right as I heard him apologize for my ship. Bastard… Who else was he expecting to fly around in a black and gray _Xiphos_?! So far, no one else owns a ship in the same make and color as mine! A _Xiphos_ is a rarity among the other models the Dark Knights use and he decides to blow it up?

"You're a piece of shit, you know that, Master Vergil?"

"Yeesh, I said I'm sorry."

"Sparda is right. You really are a piece of shit to shoot his ship down when you know a _Xiphos_ is a rarity among the _Lisets_ , _Mantises_ , and _Scimitars_. The _Xiphos_ -class is what got us through our war with the Tenno because of its speed and durability, remember?" A voice called from above. Oh no, I'd recognize that voice anywhere. "If it were _my Xiphos_ , I'd throw you in a tornado that won't stop until you make up for it."

Sitting on top of a pillar as a perch point was another of the Conclave Masters, legs swinging off the edge. The coincidentally named Master Zephyr, a Master specializing in the Archwing and aerial combat. Her armor was streamlined and better suited in the air, which better reflected her subclass of a Zephyr. Haven't heard from her since my defeat at the Archwing tournament at the Academy and that was twenty years ago. She leapt down from her perch and slowly descended down like she was an angel. Zephyrs often have the ability to slowly descend from any height and have a lot more agility in the air compared to the rest of the subclasses.

"Didn't expect your face to show up again, love," she greets me with an ancient British accent. "Thought you'd bite the dust on flying after that defeat at the tournament a good while back."

"I'm not so sad to say this, but Lyssa just died out in the Belt."

"Really now?" Master Zephyr folded her arms. "Good. She wasn't worth teaching anyhow. All hardheaded and refuses to listen to most of my lessons, thinking her way is better…"

"So I did you a favor, Master Zephyr."

"Yep! But don't think you've earned my favor by taking out Lyssa. You still have ways to go in aerial combat and maneuvers."

These guys are supposed to be what remains of my father's disciples and under Teshin's guidings? They're more like my generation. Teshin, Zephyr, and Asada? Not so much my generation.

Truth be told, Asada isn't that older than me: just a few years older, to be exact. Where I look twenty-four, she has to be at least thirty in a physical sense. Her mother knew my father and was one of his closest advisors for every mission they made for the Eximus and soon, the Conclave. Even his top Predator — the Tenno/Dark Knight equivalent of a Hunter back in the olden days — during the war. Unfortunately, she passed away the day before the end of the Tenno-Dark Knight War protecting her daughter from an assault, leaving behind a young Asada without a parent. Master Asada won't talk about her father and downright refuses to do so. Even with her issues, she's the best shot of a Predator we have; maybe the last good one.

While Asada didn't fight alongside my father and Teshin during the war, Zephyr did. After all, aerial combat and long range reconnaissance was her speciality. Her role hasn't changed at all from her time in the Eximus to the Conclave. Often she did recon on the enemy to see the scope of the enemy's defenses and outflying anyone, whether it be in space or in the air with her _Xiphos_ or Archwing. I believe she was fifty-four by the time the war ended, which meant she was physically eighteen. Impressive, really.

"Where's Teshin?"

"He's at the top of the summit," Asada said, putting a hand on my shoulder reassuringly. "Although it's good to see you again, you _chibi_ (runt). Routine wasn't the same with you gone."

A scoff escaped my nostrils and then she riled up my hair playfully. The times I remember her doing that to me and Lightning, so nostalgic… "Yeah. We have a lot of catching up to do." My hands started fixing my hair back into the way it was and I made sure it would be that way.

"Maybe so, but I have a feeling he's not coming down from the summit anytime soon. He may want you to climb up there to meet him."

"Actually, Teshin isn't going anywhere until Sparda goes up there. Said something about it being a test." Vergil butted in. "It _has_ been four years since you left home and your training, after all. He thinks you were slacking off while you were among the Guardians."

My heart sank. He wants _me_ to climb the summit to talk with him? Typical of the hermit… Can't even be assed to give me a break, can he? Then again, he'll always say 'No excuses' to everyone. If there's one thing I cannot tolerate at all, it's climbing the summit when there is a snowstorm outside. The cold won't do me any favors for the time and effort I used climbing. And also, _no I didn't slack off with my training_ , you old hermit!

"Do I have to do it now?"

The three Masters looked at each other as though one of them had the answer. It was like a shell game where I had to remember which cup or shell the item is hiding. Even the silence and crackling fire wasn't helping to ease the tension I felt. Master Zephyr finally spoke up after a while.

"Teshin saw how hurt you were when you crashed and figured you need rest. He's not as harsh as you think, Sparda."

Honestly, I didn't ask for special treatment from Teshin. I was fine as I was with my former training before I left, which was like everyone else. Sighing, I tried to get back on my feet and I almost fell on my back if it weren't for Asada catching me. Damn, my back hurts more than the rest of my body… How hard did my ship crash, exactly? For all I know, the pain felt like I fell into a pit full of stalagmites and was impaled as a result. As Asada helped me stand, my tendrils wrapped around my legs like they were an organic exoskeleton.

"You need to save your strength, _baka_."

"For a Master horrible at making leisurely tea, you have a point," I joked. "I have no intention of going up there like this. Not after the last time I was weakened."

"We have time for your tales, Nero Pendragon." That's the first time I heard Master Zephyr address me by my real name rather than 'rookie' or 'hot shot'. Guess I did earn some respect after Lyssa got blown to smithereens. "Start with the good bits first! I want to hear how Lyssa died out in the Belt!"

Looks like I have time to kill. Teshin can wait after I recover my strength.

"So, where do I begin…? Oh yeah, right at the beginning and why I decided to come back." As I began to weave the tale of Lyssa's death, a nagging thought came to my mind. It started off as subtle, then just as important of a detail like remembering one's face in a snap.

Rose.

And Reaper.

I hope that they don't think I abandoned them. This is for their safety before the Taken Take me. Hopefully there's another way to get rid of the Taken within me. The Stalker is formidable, but I couldn't defeat them with the strength I have now. I need to become stronger, unlock the potential I chose to neglect because I feared using the Darkness. In fact, I didn't just come here for help from Teshin.

It was more than that.

 ** _-_ _Destiny: Skyfall-_**

 _1206 Hours, December 24, 2714_

 _The Tower, Earth_

Father…

Why did you go? Was it because I put everyone at risk for saving you from the Stalker? Please come back…

As I stared at the sun from the Hangar, my hand scratched behind Neo's ears as his head rested on my lap. He's been whining sadly all day. Auntie's panicking and mad at your absence. She scares me when she's angry. You weren't in your workshop or at the other planets and Moon. You're scaring us, making us worried.

Neo kept whining even as I scratched the back of his ears to calm him down. "It's okay, boy. He'll come back."

Lying isn't what I like to do but I had to do something to stop Neo's whining. It's not annoying or anything, but the more I hear it, the sadder I feel. Like it was my fault. I couldn't stand by and watch him die!

"Father…come back…" Tears were streaming down my face and I hugged my knees to my chest. I wouldn't care if I looked weak and sob like a baby; I _am_ still a baby in my head, but my body aged into a teenager because I want to protect father. To be by his side when he falls.

Neo knew the pain I felt and started nuzzling his nose against my side. Mother said that he can understand the emotions of the people around him and comforts them to the best he could. Then he started to howl like a wolf before the full moon. To be with his owner for a few days and alone again, it must've broke Neo's heart.

"Rose!"

Before I could look up, I was tackled by a spiral of a twister and my back was slammed against the wall. Only one Guardian could pull off the same move as I can.

"Ow, Ruby…" The Huntress in question clung onto me like a child and hugged me tightly that it felt like I'll be crushed by her strength. "Can't…breathe!" I hugged Ruby back to hopefully get her back to her senses before she kills me by hugging!

"Ugh, you dolt!" A white Warlock, Weiss, grabbed Ruby by the back of her cloak and pulled her away from me, so that I can breathe again. Neo came to my side and comforted me, his whimpering changed to one of aiding.

"Ohmigosh, I'm sorry!" Ruby apologized, falling to her knees in front of me to look at me. "I was worried about you all day! Why weren't you responding to my calls?"

"Sorry, I was so focused on finding my…" Should I tell them that their mentor is my father? I don't have any proof that he is and they'll probably think I'm crazy. Oh, what do I do?!

"My…" Panic was taking over and I can feel the tears coming back when I remembered that father left for two days now. My hands were shaking violently and they could see it. "My…mentor."

The black Huntress, Blake, knelt down next to me curious at my action. Her cat-like eyes scanned over me and I swore that her bow twitched a little like they were ears. "Rose, something's bothering you. What's going on?"

"Did someone break your heart?" Yang, the golden-yellow Titaness punched her fist into her palm, plated knuckles ready to hurt someone. "Tell me who it is and I'll make them pay for breaking my little Rosie's heart!"

"I-it's nothing like that, Yang!" I managed to blurt out. "I'm worried for Spectre's absence. He promised me we'd keep practicing on my technique."

"So he's your mentor? I didn't think he would be the type to take people under his wing." Blake asked. My head nodded in response. "I'm sure he wouldn't leave without a reason."

Blake is right. Father has to have a reason to just leave us. It can't be because of me; he _forgave_ me for saving him from the Stalker and he wouldn't leave because of me or Reaper. But why? Did he have some kind of unfinished business that I was not aware about? Something that he had to deal with alone?

The tone for an incoming message rang in my ears. It has to be from father! Quickly, I reached for my helmet and slapped it on, ignoring the sudden words from my friends. My eyes diverted to the corner of my helmet's visor where the message would be.

 _ **[9 13 7-15-9-14-7 20-15 2-5 20-18-1-9-14-9-14-7 20-15 20-1-11-5 15-14 20-8-5 19-20-1-12-11-5-18. 25-15-21 12-12 11-14-15-23 23-8-5-18-5 20-15 6-9-14-4 13-5. 9 8-1-22-5 20-15 4-15 20-8-9-19 1-12-15-14-5, 19-15 4-15-14 20 23-15-18-18-25. 9 12-12 2-5 6-9-14-5.]**_

Numbers? Why would he send me numbers? What hope is it? I have no Ghost nor A.I to tell me what it means. My hopes deflated and I took off my helmet. It came from father, so I have hope that he is alive.

Where are you, father? Please be okay…

* * *

 **A/N: Well, we've hit the end of the road for this chapter. It was a long one to write, and I would like to thank those that have been patient waiting for this chapter to be posted as I've hit a roadblock with my other project's chapter.**

 **The Crimson Commando (II-XXI): Yes, it is time for the Light to be tested across the Earth in a place that is devoid of it, plagued by its blights. And plus, I figured that it was a bit of appropriate timing for that reference, so there you go.**

 **Mr. Dox The Fox (II-XXI): Oh trust me, you'll see him with his full potential in due time, my friend. Luckily, we've addressed most of your review through the PM and Spectre does still have a chance against Oryx, Samson, and the Stalker. It's a matter of dedication and a pursuit to become the Guardian of Equilibrium he was born to be. (Get it, because his parents are a Tenno and a Dark Knight? No? Okay.)**

 **Stay safe out there Guardians and enjoy both Iron Banner and Age of Triumph while it lasts! DESTINY 2 HYYYYYYYPPPE!**


	38. II-XXIII: Surgite

**_Chapter XXIII: S_** ** _urgite (Rise Up)_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _Conclave Temple, O?d ?ri?i?h E?pi?e, Earth_

 _Unknown time, December 25, 2714_

Truth be told as of now, resting in the central chamber of the Temple is a bad idea.

The sound of gongs and bells bombarded my hearing and rudely woke me up from my sleep to recover my strength. Groaning, I covered my ear that was closest to a ringing bell or gong and waited for the obnoxious, yet melodious rings to come to an end. Right now, I could care less what time it is and how much sleep I got.

"Still haven't forgotten how we ring the bells and gongs, I see." Master Asada was next to one of the gongs in the room, a mallet in hand and struck the gong in a hypnotizing harmony with the bells' chiming.

"If I had to choose between nightmares of what I've done and the Temple's 'wake up' ceremony for my wake up call, I think I'll choose the former." I grumbled, sitting up from the floor of the memorial chamber. "Do you always have to ring the gong, Master Asada?"

"Well, I've got nothing better to do in the mornings except finding herbs for my tea," she spun the mallet in her hand and struck the gong again. "Besides, I don't want to be the one who handles setting up the training equipment and courses across the Temple."

After I winced at the second ringing, my head shook to get the echo out of my ears. Telling between whether or not it was a morning routine around the Temple to ring all the bells and gongs or my wake-up call didn't exactly do the best I could to remember the times I've been here. As I look around the main chamber, I notice that something's missing. Or rather, two things are missing.

"Where's Master Vergil and Zephyr?"

"Either they're getting up or they're talking to Teshin regarding you. I haven't seen them this morning, even if Zephyr's an early bird."

"How thoughtful."

Asada put the mallet down and leaned against the side of the gong, arms folded. "Every Master has their special field, Sparda. It wouldn't hurt to get in some practice before you start teaching it to others."

"I guess extreme survival would have to deal with outside the Temple every day, am I right?"

"Being trapped on a mountain where it snows all the damn time isn't exactly a variety of environments for my speciality."

I walked towards the main entrance to the chamber and was greeted to the giant door. You'd think it'd be impossible to open a door when it's the height of two Kells stacked on top of each other, but you're wrong. Sliding my hand across the surface of the door, it wasn't hard to find the handle and I pushed forward. A section of the doors opened and the cold wind blasted my face, helmet forming and protecting me. The first rays of sunlight shone on my visor and the view of the world below the mountain greeted me. Well, whatever could be seen from the snowstorm, which meant nothing but snow and a few rays of the sun.

As I stood on the stairs leading up to the main chamber, the thought of coming here felt more right than I thought. Running away from my duties isn't exactly what would describe me, nor was it to get away from the stress.

"Sorry 'bout the bells and gongs ringing while you were asleep, love." Master Zephyr sat on top of another pillar and looked down at me. "But we have a routine around the Temple to start at this point in the morning. 'No excuses,' as Teshin would say."

No excuses. That's the one rule Teshin had set in stone once the Conclave began to train new Dark Knights. Unfortunate for all of the Masters to also be under this rule, so they aren't exempted from it. Everyone has an obligation once they come here, so it's a simple 'do the damn thing' with, of course, no excuses. Sure I've heard some complaining from other Dark Knights during training, but the discipline the Masters impose wipe that from memory.

"Would've been nice to let me know or something."

"Can't always think that we'll be considerate to others when ringing the gongs and bells. Here," she tosses me a canteen. "This ought to compensate for a meal you'd typically get at the Tower."

Twisting the cap off, I took a sniff at it. It was pleasant but perhaps _too_ pleasant. Like a really good-smelling breakfast too good to be true. After Master Asada's tea, I was wary of what drinks are provided to me. "The hell is this?"

"It's a breakfast drink made by yours truly. Shouldn't be too bad as Asada's tea!"

"I heard that!" Asada called out from within the main chamber, playful and slightly offended at the comment. For someone who _knows_ they can't make leisurely tea, she does seem touchy about her ability. A smile crossed my lips and I took a swig from the canteen.

…

…

…Huh, that's not as bad as I thought! Refreshing, even!

"Oi, save some for me, you hear?" Zephyr calls out when she saw me take more than a swig of the drink.

"Yeah yeah, here you go," I twisted the cap back on and threw it up in the air.

My decision to look up wasn't probably worth it as she leapt off the pillar and front flipped gracefully, catching the canteen mid-flip and then assuming a diving pose like she was about to head into a pool. A gust of wind engulfed itself around her and sticks the landing gracefully. The wind blasts past me and I covered my helmeted face until it passed.

"That was showing off, Master Zephyr." I managed to say after the wind had passed.

"Well, I'm not waiting for my armor to get me down to the ground. Better to be moving quickly than waiting 'till you hit the ground," she puts up a finger. "Lesson one from me: if you're going to avoid gunshots while you're in the air, especially when a sniper has their sights on you, dive like you mean it. Before you lose your head or be filled full of holes."

Like I ever forgot that lesson. But given how I didn't see a purpose in it while I was in the Tower, I didn't practice that as often. Besides, it'd be odd if a supposed Titan started pulling maneuvers that _wasn't_ a Lift in the air.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Simple, really," she pointed towards a level below her and a course was there in the mild snowstorm. "The obstacle course. Teshin wants to see if you haven't forgotten basic maneuvers in the time you've been among the Guardians."

Of course he'd still think I slacked off. "There's a catch, isn't there?"

She twisted off the cap and took a big swig from the bottle-shaped canteen. "Do it in the snowstorm right now. With the low visibility, unpredictability of the traps, and no use of MI6 giving you a heads up when he can barely process a fast moving target. Of course, same rules apply."

Uh-huh. When they mean the 'same rules', that pretty much meant no Subclass abilities, firearms and weapons except knives, and no sleight of hand tricks. Like I ever forgot that.

 **"** **I resent that, Master Zephyr."** I heard my A.I retort.

Unpredictability. When the Masters mean that, they really mean 'traps triggered by the Master overseeing the course whenever the hell they feel like it'! Seriously, if others thought it was a rigged system, they haven't seen who's pulling the strings on the traps. Trust me, I've seen the Masters use their gauntlet as the control panel for the trap when no one else was looking.

Sighing, I started descending the steps from the main chamber to the obstacle course. The snowstorm wasn't as bad as it was when I came here two days ago, but true to Zehpyr's word, it was thick as fog right now. Howling winds, the cold biting me even with my armor on, it's the whole package. Asada would've loved to see this. How the old hermit can survive being up at the summit without freezing to death still boggles my mind.

I stood at the start of the obstacle course, ready to take it on. The sound of the course being activated echoed in the wind, followed by clinking and grinding metal, a sudden burst of flames from a flamethrower, and swinging blades. Wonderful. Because of this snowstorm, I can barely see the course in front of me, let alone the first potential trap!

"Son of a…" During my times running the courses, the Masters gave a cryptic lesson to the others. I couldn't comprehend it, but now I knew what the lesson was during a course in an environment like this. Let the Darkness guide you, be your compass. Being an ignorant fool to forsake the Darkness and use the Light, now I could see the consequences.

 _"_ _Begin!"_ Zephyr's voice called out.

Cursing myself, I ran straight for it without even thinking—

—and paid the price for it. Right as I vaulted over a log serving as a hurdle, I was thrown back by a massive object slamming into me. My back slammed against the face of a rock and I swore that my spine broke on impact. My Animas Crystal already started healing me and my spine especially was numb as I healed. Tempted as I was to scream painfully, my voice couldn't make a sound and I fell to the ground on my hands and knees. My spine really _did_ break…

"Argh… mother fucking—"

"Can't always expect us to be fair, Pendragon!" Zephyr noted. "And watch that mouth of yours, hot shot! Especially around us Masters!"

Damn her! As much of a point she has, what kind of honor does a Master have if they decide to throw a trap at literally the first second?! And with a battering ram, no less! I thought Masters were supposed to hold some kind of honor!

"What good of a Dark Knight are you to be if you forgot the basic maneuvers? Teshin would be disappointed if his adopted son was actually slacking off for the last two years!"

Actually, I resent that because I wallrun a number of times, so I didn't forget some of them! Sure, the Guardians I face in the Crucible think I'm a cheater when I wallrun and escape their line of fire, maybe even get the drop on them with my Immobius, but it's unfair how the Hunters and Warlocks had Blink before the rise of Shadestep and Twilight Garrison, leaving us Titans with only Lift. Probably would've been better off as a Hunter instead of a Titan when I first arrived, now that I think about it.

"Shut up, Master Zephyr." My spine stopped feeling numb and I got on my feet, panting after that slam from the battering ram. "Whatever happened to honor?!"

"No excuses, hot shot!" My shoulders dropped upon hearing the two _golden_ words expected from a Master, even Teshin himself. "Get back out there!"

D-did she serious just quote Lord Shaxx? If she was trying to do an impression of him, I'd say she nailed it in urgency. Now the thought of the Masters and Lord Shaxx working together in the Crucible scares me. His harshness and types of training, combined with the 'no excuses' rule of the Masters? That's not going to be a good combination.

Looking back at the shrouded obstacle course, my hand curled into a fist. As much as I did ask to come here to learn how to use the Darkness, it also begged the question of was I ready to withstand its full potential when the dust settles? Sighing and briefly fogging up my helmet's visor, my greaved boot dug into the snow. Seeing as they only have one use per trap, the chances of activating the battering ram were zero to none.

Time to go!

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

I take back what I said about it being time to go. All of it.

My body collapsed into the snow in exhaustion, chest heaving as I tried to catch my breath. For someone that had mastered this obstacle course some time ago, I look pathetic as hell right now. Dodging swinging blades from blind spots, avoiding being burned alive, maybe even being crushed in between two logs? Should sound like a piece of cake, but no, the timing of the traps and difficulty of the course made it seem remotely impossible. And I partially blame myself for this, for not practicing the bullet jumps, catapult jumps, and dive bombs. The snowstorm is still present, and I still can't see shit at all.

"Too long, rookie."

My head lifted up from the snow and I saw both Zephyr and Asada standing in front of me, clearly not impressed with my performance on the obstacle course.

"It took you ten minutes to finish when it should've taken you at least half the time," a holographic projection with the course time from years ago appeared next to Asada, where the record time was, without a doubt, mine with four minutes, twenty-seven seconds. "What happened, Sparda? Lost your touch because of the Absolution Directive?"

"Without a doubt." I replied, getting back to my feet with the help of Asada. "I hated that assignment. Thank the Traveler that I gave up on it."

"Man, Teshin would've been disappointed in you right now. His expectations from you are high, you know?"

No shit on that. Of course a son of Trionus Pendragon would be expected to follow in the footsteps of their father… Truth be told, I didn't weasel my way through training here at the Temple because I was an exception of sorts. No, it was because of foolishness. Foolish of me to think that the Darkness was something forbidden to use.

"Says the one that has the one thing that Dark Knights don't have," I pointed out, eying something hovering above Asada's shoulder. "A Ghost."

"This is an inheritance, remember? I inherited this Ghost from my mother in her dying breath."

My arms folded in spite of the numbness and pain I felt from running the obstacle course. "I still find it odd how a creation of Light is with a Dark Knight."

Master Asada's Ghost turned to face its partner, then back to me. Its 'eye' began to glow in and out, but instead of words, we heard beeps and whirs. Oh, how much I missed this from her Ghost… It was a slight headache hearing the Ghost 'talk', but it was a good thing that its speech was translated directly to our HUDs.

 ** _[Shut up, Sparda.]_** was the translation.

Yeesh, that wasn't necessary. But I suppose that being around as long as Asada would make it senile in a way. Eh, who knows?

"Settle down, Ghost." Asada sighs, pushing away her mother's Ghost as it started to say rather…colorful words. I won't go into detail about what Ghost said, since it's not for the faint of heart.

The sound of the course resetting itself reached my ears. "Run the course again, Sparda. You're getting there, but you can't master it in just two tries with your newly awakened Darkness." Zephyr said after Ghost had settled down from the onslaught.

My head turned to look at the two Masters behind me. "Just watch me." A confidence burned within me, one that I haven't felt for a while. Even though I accepted the Darkness, my fears still remain of losing myself to it. Then again, my Subclass was earned through that grueling Trial.

The Darkness within me was growing stronger. It wasn't trying to take over me, but it felt good. The power… As tempting as it was, I knew that I shouldn't control it. Of course, the insecurity I felt still lingers. Let the Darkness be your guide, your senses. Instinct alone will not help you against the unknown.

Before I knew it, my senses were sharpened. The wind became louder than normal but honed in on the distant things and my eyesight sharpened, seeing through the veil the snowstorm created. I can see the course in its entirety, even the places where the traps were hiding.

Right before Master Zephyr could signal my second run, I already took off and vaulted over the first obstacle. The battering ram that caught me off guard the first time was released—

—and I vaulted right over it like I knew it was coming in that fast. The cables connecting the siege engine were seen and I cut it with my knife in one fell go, slamming against the hurdle and knocking it over. My feet landed on the stepping stones and I regained my balance rather quickly without the help of my shadow tendrils. You know the saying 'slow and steady wins the race'? Fuck that rule when you'd anticipate swinging blades just waiting to fuck your day up. I stopped myself before I moved to the next stepping stone and the swinging blade appeared ready to cleave me in half. Ducking before that happened and balancing myself between the stones, I got up as soon as I knew the blade was nowhere near me and kept going, avoiding the flamethrower that knocked me off the stones because of its intensity. Above me was a wall that had no clear way of scaling it parkour-style due to the ice. Right as the two logs that crushed me were sprung.

"Son of a—!" Quickly, I jumped up higher than normal and above the logs, which collided with each other in a spectacular display of wood splinters flying. Jumping again to gain leverage, my hand reached out for the edge of the wall and I clung onto it for dear life. No traps since I was beyond the stage where the last trap would drop boulders on me should I have scaled the wall. With both hands on the ledge, I flipped myself up and over, but not before rolling to the side when an Opticor-mounted sentry locked onto me. Of course that cannon had to be made into a sentry…

Rushing towards the sentry, I disarmed it with my knife cutting the vital wiring required to fire it remotely and leapt off the wall, sliding on it like it was a slope until I hit the floor and quickly got up before another trap sprung.

There's not much of the course left before I clear it. Time was of the essence when it came to my progress, but Master Zephyr was right. A success on the second run doesn't equal mastery. Better off to run it as many times as I can before she would declare that it was enough to be mastered.

* * *

Teshin stood at a slope overlooking the Temple, hand on the hilt of his Nikana Prime. Compared to down here, the snowstorm was as tame as an ocean of waves, sun clear as day and the sky clear. He saw the progress of his adopted son below in the obstacle course and was not impressed with the first round. As his torn cape fluttered gently with the breath of the cold wind, the warmth of flames from one of his sheaths reached his hand.

The scars of war were present on his armor, worn out to the point that the original design was barely recognizable. Scars from fighting his Tenno brethren and before that, fighting to reclaim what once belonged to everyone living in the City. Each of them told a story. Stories of triumph, and others stories of defeat. Perhaps the most prominent scar was the scratched sigil of a dragon's head on his shoulder, regal and mighty.

"Still playing guardian, I see."

Teshin felt no urge to draw his sword and point it at the person behind him. The Darkness that had he had learned to be one with already told him enough from their presence. Under the helmet, he had a stern look just the same as his old friend, Trionus Pendragon. "I swore to him that I would train his children, not be their father," he turned around and was greeted to an old friend who put her hands on her hips. "I had hope that you were not recruited by this Hive 'God'… Master Eden."

Master Eden bore the armor held onto by those who had mastered both Light and Darkness, shaded just the same as the Conclave Masters. Her arms were covered by drape-like appendages; one black and red, the other white and gold, and a skirt reaching to her ankles with the same design as the arm drapes adorned her lower half. Truth be told, her armor didn't appear designed for combat, but rather as something akin to a warpriest or an oracle.

"And I assumed that because I do not fight unless necessary would make me easy prey to our enemies?" She approached the Conclave leader and folded her arms across her breastplate, looking down at the son of Trionus. "'And thus the Crownless King shall seek guidance from the generation before Him / through the tides of Fate and past the weave of time, He shall rise with the power to reclaim his crown.'"

"Still speaking prophecies and hymns, I see," Teshin recalled. "Tell me, Eden: do you really think he is ready? To accept the Darkness and take back his birthright?"

Eden looked over to her fellow war veteran and former mentor, then at Spectre as he continued to run through the obstacle course for what has to be the sixth time. She cupped her hands together and a sphere of Equilibrium formulated, bright as a gem under the light. "He has already accepted the Darkness for some time now, Teshin. It is safe to assume that he already has…to some degree. He is still reluctant to use the Darkness as an ally, but…"

"But what, Eden?"

"He shows great promise, just like his father. In time, he will show this promise." She began chanting an ancient language as though a prayer. As she spoke in this language, the red and gold along her arm drapes and skirt illuminated and the sphere swirling the same. "'The flames have been fanned, bringing the Dark into the Light / by His right alone, the war has but truly begun for Him / should He stray from his goal, then all Hope shall be lost.'"

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that was rather ominous… and prophetic.**

 **Prophet: You think? I think I got goosebumps hearing Eden's words.**

 **Me: You don't have any goosebumps.**

 **Prophet:** ** _Ghost_** **goosebumps.**

 **Me: Is that even a thing?**

 **Mr. Dox the Fox (II-XXII): Hopefully this one lives up to your expectations as well! And now the training for his full potential has begun!**

 **Stay safe out there, Guardians.**


	39. II-XXIV: Hunted

**_Chapter XXIV: Hunted_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _Ishtar Region, Venus_

 _Unknown Time, December 25, 2714_

"Should be the last Taken."

"You think? They'll be back soon."

Reaper slumped against the cavern wall and slid down, hand on her Night Predator bow. Killing the Taken was starting to become tiresome, especially if the Fallen were also focusing their fire on her. The back of her helmet bumped against the stone and she looked up to the skies of Venus through a crack.

"Why'd he leave? It doesn't make any sense…" As much as Reaper wanted to cry, she couldn't.

"I doubt it was because of you. Spectre loves you, after all."

She faced her partner who was sitting across from her. Rose had her scout rifle at the ready and rested her arms on her bent knees. Spectre's dog sat down next to his current owner, the panting quick even with an oxygen supplier over its head. The Titaness-Huntress patted the canine and nuzzled his head next to her helmet like it was licking her face.

"I wish he would let me talk with him, even for a minute to know if he's okay…"

"You're not the only one, Reaper."

 _"_ _Rose, it's Blake. We're done with our sweep near the Citadel. How's it looking on your end?"_ The black Huntress from Fireteam RWBY said from a private comms channel.

Rose pressed two fingers against her helmet. "The Cinders is clear of Taken for now. We're headed out to the rendezvous point soon."

 _"_ _Meet you there."_ The line was cut and Rose stood up. Neo whined and slowly stood on all fours.

Reaper decided to tag along with Eroxs and Fireteam RWBY for some Taken containment to prevent it from spreading to other enemies the Guardians have faced before. She didn't want to just stay locked up in her quarters, moping around the disappearance of her boyfriend. Cloud, Aqua, and Leon were on Earth, Mars, and the Moon, but Lightning remained in the Tower to oversee the war with the Vanguards. Ever since her brother left, she took on the role of the Dark Knight Vanguard again, even if she was distraught. And to Reaper, she's doing one hell of a job at it.

The bow folded into a compact form and Reaper stowed it away at the small of her back, getting back on her feet and putting on her cloak's hood. Neo circled around her before nuzzling its helmeted head against her leg.

"Aww, thanks, boy." She knelt down and patted the German shepherd descendant on the head, which he barked and wagged his tail happily.

"Guess he likes you too." Rose patted the side of her leg and pulled out a dog treat. Neo came almost immediately when he saw the treat and Rose fed him. "Sniff them out, boy."

Neo barked and sniffed the air for any surviving Taken. He went in a circle and then against the cavern floor. A disappointed whine erupted and his ears lowered.

"It's clear. There won't be any ambushes anytime soon." Rose reported, translating Neo's findings.

Reaper nodded and saw Neo run in the direction of the rendezvous point. As cautious as the canine normally was, he seemed eager to get out of the Cinders. She could understand why. The Cinders didn't seem to be his favorite place, especially with the Ketch here in the Cinders. With Rose, the Guardians walked to the cave they came from, where Neo was barking for their attention.

The Bladedancer looked at her partner. "Can I ask you something, Eroxs?"

"What is it?"

"If Neo is Spectre's dog, how were you able to treat him like you were his owner?"

Rose cupped the underside of her helmet in a way Reaper would recognize as a child-like manner. "He told me that Neo is obedient to the ones he trusts. It was a little difficult to gain Neo's trust, but in no time, he started obeying me like I was Spectre." She explained.

"And how did you gain Neo's trust?"

"One half is your scent, and the other is how you treat him in particular. Like giving him well-done steak and treats."

"He's that spoiled, isn't he?"

Rose shrugged. "Guess all the fighting Neo does with Spectre makes him really hungry."

Reaper made a mental note about Eroxs's aura. She saw it fluctuate between indigo and violet as well as a faint hint of black, but above it all, it remained between those two. _Something's off about her… she seems to be too young to be a Guardian._

The pieces didn't add up in a logical sense. A Guardian that seems to be younger than the norm? Coupled with experience of a veteran, especially with that scout rifle-scythe of hers? Fireteam RWBY was the first to break the norm, and then Eroxs came along. Reaper knew how her boyfriend can mentor other Guardians in survival and combat as harsh as Lord Shaxx, but taking someone like Eroxs under his wing in a snap? She figured that they had some history as friends, partners maybe. However, their relationship seemed more than mentor and student. No, it felt like a brotherly-sisterly bond.

"Reaper, are you okay?"

The Bladedancer snapped out of her trance and looked at the Titaness-Huntress. She nodded. "Just thinking about some things."

"Like what?"

"How old are you, Eroxs?"

"Um… forty-eight?" Rose answered uncertainly, like she didn't know herself. "Spectre said that I might've suffered from amnesia or something. The only thing that's been confirmed is that I'm around Ruby's age."

"You and Ruby _are_ alike, after all. I would be surprised if you were sisters!"

Rose chuckled innocently. "I don't think I can handle Yang's puns and her ever-so doting love on her sister!"

A series of barks brought the two to their attention. Neo was running back to them and quickly turned around when he was close to their feet. He was snarling and barking at something.

"Neo, what's wrong?" Rose knelt down and looked in the direction that Neo was barking at. "Is it more Taken, buddy?" A snarl and more fierce barks were the canine's response.

Without warning, Neo ran off into the caverns. Rose commanded him to stay, but he didn't listen at all. She reached for the remote control for the collar around Neo to calm him down. It wasn't right to use it, as it brought electrical shocks to stop him. The remote was in her hand and her thumb was just hovering over the button. Something wasn't right. Rose could feel it in the air.

The Bladedancer felt it too. With her aura-reading ability, she was able to pinpoint what was in the air. In her vision, she saw something resembling the Taken aura when they were nearby, but it was pitch black like the emptiness of space. Like smoke or fog, the aura was coming from within the cavern.

"Neo!" Rose put away the remote control and ran after her father's dog. Reaper followed suit, but was a little behind given how fast Rose moved.

"Blake, are you at the rendezvous point?"

 _"_ _Almost, Reaper. Ghost picked up a powerful energy spike near your location."_

"Taken?"

 _"_ _No. It's off the charts, even with applying the Taken's energy levels."_ Blake replied.

That already frightened her. Unbelievably, she took a copy of the report from their Infestation clean-up mission on the Moon and replayed Spectre's helmet feed of his fight with the Stalker. _Could it be…!?_

"Blake, hurry!" Reaper cut the line before Blake could say anything. She reached for her Night Predator and it unfolded in her hands, nocking in an arrow. The arrowhead burst with Arc electricity the moment the nock made contact with the string. As unprepared as she was to face someone like the Stalker, Reaper was ready to take the chances.

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

The two Guardians found their way to Winter's Lair. Fallen were nowhere in sight, and the place was desolate. Most of the Fallen equipment remained in place, and only a few were discarded like a storm tore by.

Reaper stopped running and aimed her bow, eyes flicking about left and right. It was dark like a cavern would be, the only light coming from the Venus skies above. She aimed in correspondence with her eyes, the faint Arc energy serving as her makeshift lamp. Her breaths were heavy from the running. _Dammit, where could you be, Eroxs?_ She lost her, having to resort to relying on the trail Rose left behind when she turns into a spiral.

"Eroxs?!" Reaper called out into the darkness. The arrow that was nocked lost its tension and the Sapphire Wire-made bowstring aligned with the limbs of the weapon.

"Neo!"

Eroxs was below where Reaper was standing, just on one of the platforms the Fallen made here. Neo was there on the platform too, tail raised aggressively. Reaper heard the canine snarl from her distance.

The cloaked Titaness approached her father's companion. "Neo, what's wrong?" She hugged the aggressive dog to calm him down. "Neo?"

Whatever light was left in the area disappeared, Darkness blanketing it all for a split second. A howl in the wind swept by, deafening the Guardians' ears and the canine to bark again. Ankle-deep fog emerged in the area, and chills ran down their spines.

Reaper's HUD flickered, rendering her tracker useless and every vital part of it scrambled. Rex tried to bring it back online, but it ended in the display in her helmet being corrupted and forcing a mainframe shutdown.

 ** _"_** ** _There is no place to hide, Guardian of Light."_** A voice rasped in the Bladedancer's audio receptor. Each word felt like her Light was being drained from her, and the sting from a snake's bite pricked in her arms. She gasped and raised her bow, aiming to her left. A puff of smoke was all that was left. However, she saw the faint outline of who she assumed to be the Stalker.

 _Is this the Stalker?! I thought he would only go after Lightning and the_ kazoku _!_

 ** _"_** ** _The Hatchling's crime will not go unpunished. Do you foolish Guardians think that there would be no mercy from such an action?"_** It whispered again, this time coming from right behind the Bladedancer. Reaper reached for her knife and turned around. She slashed nothing but smoke. Keeping her hand on her knife, she looked around, other hand holding the bow and arrow in place.

 ** _"_** ** _I am your end!"_** A hand reached for her throat and she choked, dropping her bow and knife as she was spun around. Reaper's eyes met a cylindrical helmet with slit eyes for vision. The greatsword was in the Stalker's hand, illuminating a blood red. The Stalker threw her and she plummeted to the ground. Her form slammed against a rock formation and she cried out painfully.

"Reaper!" Rose ran to her side. A gasp escaped her lips when she saw how much damage was brought to the Huntress. Some of the rocks were impaled around Reaper's body and blood pooled under her. "Reaper…" She picked the Bladedancer up and set her against the rocks.

"Don't… worry about me." Reaper put a hand on Rose' shoulder, then handing her Spectre's custom Lex Prime. "I'm a Guardian, remember? It'll take more than a fall to kill me. Just give me time to recover."

Rose felt something against her side and turned her head. Neo was by her side, calmed from barking but just as aggressive as ever. In his jaws was Reaper's Night Predator, miraculously recovered in spite of the Stalker's presence here.

"Hey," Reaper called out and caught the daughter of Nero Pendragon's attention. "You know how to use one?"

"It's your weapon, Reaper. I don't think I should—"

"Spare me that talk. I saw you handle a Shadowshot bow. You can do it again."

Rose looked at the bow once more. She held out her hand in front of Neo, quivering and unsure. Neo came closer and dropped the bow in her hand, grip of the bow resting in her palm. She saw the encouraging look in her companion's eyes and inspected the bow. Her hand held onto the grip and held it tight, stowing away the Lex Prime on her belt and taking the quiver from Reaper. Reaching for her belt, she pulled out a smoke grenade and handed it to Reaper.

"Use it as soon as you can move." She turned to face Neo. "Stay with her, boy." Neo barked affirmatively.

"Gotcha."

A red glow was at the corner of Rose's vision and she threw down another Smoke bomb, enveloping the two as she pulled Reaper away and into a safer place. The Stalker's sword stabbed through the rock instead of through a Guardian, shattering part of it. They slightly struggled to free their weapon from the rock. They were on a higher elevation in the cave and Rose nocked an arrow before aiming at the Taken Dark Knight. Her hand holding the arrow quivered even when her grip with the bow was steady. She took a deep breath and steadied her aim. The targeting system on her HUD was still functional and calculated for a swift kill. Once it turned from green to red, she let go of the arrow.

To her surprise, she launched not one, but _seven_ arrows at once. Each of the seven carried a different element, four of them the core elements the Guardians use in weapons while the rest had an icy, viral, and corrosive arrowhead respectively. The arrows fanned out horizontally, surely to not miss given the spread of the arrows. The outer arrows struck nothing but rock, but it was clear to see when three of the inside arrows struck the Stalker. Solar and Arc energy surged across the armor of the Stalker when the arrows pierced through their chest and shoulder, kinetic arrow that she was sure she fired right through the knee. The Stalker roared painfully and swung their freed sword in the direction of the arrows, wave of Taken energy forming from the sword and headed towards Rose.

Rose snapped to her senses and prepared another arrow, an ashy-gray glow along her arms. She had no time to question what was going on, but she has a faint clue to what was the source of this glow. Behind her helmet, her eyes glowed from green to the same color as the glow along her arms, and then she fired the arrow. Both arrow and wave of energy collided with one another in display of gray and cosmic, but in the end, the arrow pierced through and destroyed the attack. However, right before the arrow could hit the Stalker again, an arrow from the Stalker's bow split Rose's in half, its bladed arrowhead easily doing the job.

'Eroxs' didn't realize a gasp left her lips and hoped for the best as she wrapped her cloak around her reflexively. The arrow didn't hit her, despite her being in its flight path. She looked down and saw that she became invisible and that the arrow went through her. She reached for her other arm and it felt solid, like she was using optic camouflage. Reaching for her scout rifle on her back, she transformed it into a halberd, putting away the bow and slinging it across her back.

 ** _"_** ** _You cannot hide from me, hatching,"_** the Stalker said in a raspy voice, words echoing across the cavern. **_"You are making the same mistakes as your poor, pitiful father."_**

Rose slowly descended from above, weapon prepared and footsteps like a master Hunter, quiet and well cloaked. She held the weapon with both hands, minding her surroundings as to not give away her position. What the Stalker said about her father stung, her grip on her transformed Crimson Queen tightening. Anger washed over her over the lies spread about her father. There was no way he could be that way! In the midst of her anger, the end of her polearm scratched against the rock at her feet.

 ** _"_** ** _Like thinking that the shadows is your ally!"_** A monofilament dagger was thrown in Rose's direction, Taken energy seething from the blade. Rose returned to existence and the dagger struck her, cutting through her left shoulder plate and even part of the cloth. A burning pain surged from where the dagger struck and Rose cried out, losing her balance and falling to the ground, Crimson Queen's blade impaled next to her. Reflexively, her hand covered her arm where the blade tore through, praying that she won't become Taken. The pain felt like her arm was cut off by a saw without any form of pain killer. Tears flowed from her eyes as she tried to hold back crying.

 ** _"_** ** _Pathetic. I expected more from Pendragon's spawn."_** The Stalker appeared before the downed Titaness and started beating her with their armored boot. Cries came from her as the boot struck her at the sides and stomped on her torso. Repeatedly. **_"Without your father, you are just as weak as an infant. Shame too, because I was hoping for more of a fight from you."_**

As the Stalker continued to kick her to the ground, Rose held back the crying she would've done. She shouldn't be showing weakness, but it hurt trying to not show it. In a way, the Stalker was right. Even if she looks up to her father, she relies on him for the strength to fight. Without him, she's lost, no sense of direction…

 _Father… help me…!_ With the strength she had left, Rose tried to crawl away, only for one final stomp to her back, followed by a crunch of what she assumed to be armor and bone. A pained cry left her lips and she fell limp, barely breathing as tears blurred her sight. She could barely feel her lower body. Silent sobs erupted from her and the Stalker sensed her despair. They kicked her to have them see face to face and the Stalker stomped on her rib cage, armor and bones breaking. Rose could barely see the Taken Dark Knight, as she was slipping in and out of consciousness.

 **"** **And now, to break your father's spirit! With** ** _your death_** **!"** They raised their greatsword high, blade pointed down at her. **"Farewell, hatchling!"**

 _"_ _No!"_

* * *

 **A/N: *Pokes head out from corner* Hey guys, sorry for the update being two months instead of two weeks like normal. It's been hectic for me that I didn't have the time to write this one. Even this summer is gonna be another one of those times it may take longer than normal. I won't bore you with the details why, but I ask for your patience.**

 **MrsDox234: Glad you enjoyed the last one! Hopefully this one wasn't too much of a downer…**

 **Dragonscale1235: Thanks! Destiny and Warframe are my favorites too!**

 **Anyway, till then, Guardians.**


	40. II-XXV: Family

**_Chapter XXV: Family_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _Ishtar Region, Venus_

 _Unknown Time, December 25, 2714_

 _"_ _No!"_

A battle cry rang out in the caverns and prompted the Stalker to look in the direction of its origins. A flash of black and red streaked towards them and rammed them away from the daughter of Spectre before the killing blow was delivered. As much as the Stalker stood their ground, the Guardian or Dark Knight that rammed them did everything they could to keep them away from Rose. Before long, they were thrown into a cavern wall, a cloud of dust obscuring them from sight.

 ** _"_** ** _You dare to interfere?"_** The Stalker spat.

Standing next to Rose was the current Dark Knight Vanguard, Aegis and Dusk Repulsor at the ready in a defensive stance. Her helmet unfolded and her rage became clear in the aura surrounding her. Reaper came to her side too, wound healed and Lex Prime at the ready.

Rose weakly looked up and coughed, clutching her chest protectively. She tried to speak, but the only sounds that came out of her lips were coughs and rasps. She couldn't see anything beyond the veil of her tears, but she can definitely feel the presence of a Guardian of Equilibrium more so than Reaper's own.

"Stay away from them, Stalker!" Tohsaka barked.

The Stalker laughed. **_"Such an empty threat. Hollow and meaningless!"_** They summoned their bow and fired an arrow at Lightning, which deflected on the fiery surface of Aegis and incinerated. Lightning charged with a war cry and slashed at them.

Reaper helped Rose up and assessed Rose's wounds. Too many broken bones, she might not make it. "Light, I'm gonna get her to the ship!"

Lightning blocked a slash from the Stalker with Aegis and held on as they tried to break through her shield, looking in Reaper's direction. _"Go!"_ In the midst of the Stalker and Lightning fighting, a portal opened in front of the two-woman team, followed by Spectre's pet dog who ran into the portal.

Reaper swung one of Rose's arms across her shoulders and looked into the other side of the portal. She saw her ship landed nearby and then back at the two fighting. "I'll be back with help!"

"No, we can't risk any more Guardians dying! I'll be fine!"

"But Light—!"

 _"_ _Just go, Traveler damn it!"_ With the wave of her hand, the portal swallowed both Guardians whole, blocking out Reaper's starting signs of protest.

Lightning backflipped twice from the Stalker and reversed her grip on the sword. "Just you and me!" The aura grew stronger, consuming her with only one goal.

 ** _"_** ** _I will give your brother your final courtesy after I deliver your head to him!"_**

 ** _-Destiny: Skyfall-_**

Reaper fell silent. She looked at Eroxs' resting body in the makeshift hospital bed in her ship. The only noises she heard were the NLS Drive and the heart monitor she managed to find. Hovering over Eroxs' body was Rex, scanning and monitoring the Guardian. She was fortunate that she had autopilot on her ship's systems.

 **"** **Vitals are stable, but I dunno for how long,"** Rex reported, turning around to face her partner every once in a while. **"We should get her to 20 ASAP."**

Instead of relief, it felt like poison to Reaper. She hugged her knees to her chest and stared blankly at the body of her boyfriend's student. First, he left, now she couldn't do anything to save his student from possibly fatal wounds. She felt worthless, pathetic. A coward, perhaps.

 **"** **Reap?"** Rex approached her when she noticed the silence.

She buried her face between her knees. "It's my fault. I should've done something to help…"

 **"** **Girl, what're you talking about? Of** ** _course_** **you did something to help!"**

"But I ran like a coward instead!"

Reaper could feel the tears running down her face as soon as she looked at her Ghost in the eye. Rex flinched at her raise in voice, but kept her ground. Shame took over her mind.

 **"** **Listen girl, we** ** _knew_** **that the Stalker was too powerful for us to take on. We did the right thing, no matter if it was all in vain or not."** Rex sighed. **"Lightning can handle herself, she can get out of that alive. I hope."**

"Rex, not reassuring."

 **"** **Sorry, sorry."**

Reaper returned to burying her face between her knees and closed her eyes. What would Spectre do? He had more knowledge and survival skills than she possessed, and she had already used everything she knew to keep her partner alive. Wounds were dressed, shards of armor were carefully removed, and everything else was left to Rex.

 **"** **What the…?"**

A glow brought itself to Reaper's attention and she looked at the body of Eroxs. There, on the breastplate, was a pulsing glow fading in and out of existence. Rex hovered over the light and took a look. From the glow, it appeared to be similar to a Ghost's eye.

 **"** **What is—?"**

 _"_ _ **Gg**_ _gG_ _ **o**_ _i_ _ **ng on**_ _?"_ Rex backed away as the glow from Eroxs' breastplate hovered over her body and formed a Ghost shell-like pattern. A central red 'eye' formed and looked around, much like a Ghost. _"Oi! Who_ _ **wo**_ _k_ _ **e me**_ _fro_ _ **m my na**_ _p?! Hm…it seems my processor has fried."_ It spoke, 'eye' turning to blue. _"Oh, hello, Guardians."_

 **"** **Um, hi?"** Rex stammered, hovering to Reaper's shoulder and shell opening surprisingly. **"What the hell is he?"**

"A malfunctioning A.I?"

 _"_ _ **iii**_ _I h_ _ **hhe**_ _ard_ _ **that**_ _!"_ The A.I snapped, then looking at his partner. _"Oh no, Operator!_ _ **Who did this**_ _?!"_

Rex and Reaper looked at each other, equally surprised and confused. The light-made Ghost hovered over Eroxs' body and phased through her back and forth in a panic. Slowly, Reaper set her feet down on the floor and stood up from the adjacent bench. Panicked mumblings and blabber came from the A.I, scared out of their mind and so did the occasional glitch that made it angry.

Reaper took a closer look, but it wasn't long until the A.I faced her. Both of them froze, eyes staring at the other. She dared not to move. "Who are you?" She managed to say out loud.

 _"_ _Oh, forgive me, Guardian. I forgot to introduce myself,"_ It said, calming down from the panic. _"I am Ordis, companion of my Operator and what you can consider the counterpart to Ghosts."_

"Ordis, huh? So you were always with Eroxs?"

 _"_ _Who is Eroxs?"_

 _Ordis doesn't know his own Operator?_ Maybe she was telling the truth. Perhaps Eroxs did suffer amnesia and forgot that she had an A.I with her. However, it raised more questions to the origins of Eroxs. Whatever Eroxs did with her bow, it definitely wasn't the doing of a Nightstalker. Loading and firing seven arrows at once? That was a feat not even she could accomplish. One conclusion came to her mind.

"Rex, put 20 on the line."

 **"** **Already on it."**

Reaper felt her unease start to lessen and put a hand over her heart. Her partner's aura began to shift, changing to a magenta as though her previous color was only a shield. Out the window, her ship broke through NLS and she could see the moon in sight, its giant crater created from the conflict sticking out like a sore thumb. Whoever Eroxs was, was all but a distant thought in her mind. Maybe this was a test, a trial of fortitude. And she had to be strong.

 _ **-Destiny: Skyfall-**_

 _Where am I?_ Rose felt numb all over. Her body was enveloped by a smoothness like how she envisioned the clouds felt. It felt like a dream, a dream that would hold her in its embrace and cut her off from the harshness of the world. Rose swore she felt her mother's warm embrace in the Afterlife and her song in her ears, wishing that it was real once again.

Her eyes fluttered open, wincing at the amount of light in her eyes and she groaned, covering her eyes. Beeping from machines took over what she assumed to be her mother's voice and she tried to sit up, but to no avail.

"You're awake."

 _Huh?_ Her eyes started to dilate and focus, removing the blur in her vision and moved her head to the sound. In the corner of her sight was a pillow, and so were privacy curtains behind someone. Yellow hair and red streaks managed to break through and she saw someone sitting down. Rose's heart skipped a beat as she realized who it was. _Auntie!_

"You've got guts to try and take on the Stalker on your lonesome, Eroxs." Lightning noted, arms folded and leaning back in the chair. "You're more than what I thought you were."

Rose's unease came back in a flash, words failing her. Aunt Lightning was scary enough, and it honestly didn't help the situation at all. It felt like she was being scolded. Harshly.

"W-what do you mean?" She managed to choke out in her fear.

"A weapon unseen by the Vanguard, immediately taken into my brother's wing, and now these new powers reported by Reaper? You're not a Guardian, are you?"

An urge to shrink in her medical bed screamed in Rose's head. Already did she curl up in her bed and looked down to avoid the daggers in her aunt's eyes.

"I-I am a Guardian."

"What kind of a Guardian doesn't have a Ghost and has an A.I instead?" The questions were drilling hard into Rose's panic. The tone was bad enough, and she felt like this was the beginning. "Why did my brother immediately take you in? You're a stranger to me, I don't know or recognize you."

 _It isn't her fault…_ A sting shot up her arm and she saw the needle that hooked up to the heart monitor embedded in her arm. She wanted to take it out. "Please, can we not—?"

"Not until I get answers." Lightning stood her ground, unmoved by Rose's request. "I want to know if you were sent by the Cyphers, so that I can kill you before you assassinate us."

Rose wanted to faint. Her own aunt would kill her!? How could she?! She was her _niece_ , not some spy and assassin! She was cornered, backed against the wall by the dogs.

"I-I'm not with the Cyphers!" She felt the breaking point coming, and she shut her eyes. "I just wanted to be with father!"

The shout decayed into silence. Rose closed her eyes, afraid with what her aunt had to say and fists clenched childishly. She prayed no one else heard her big secret. Her fist flew to her pendant and hid the crystal in her hand.

"Father?" Lightning whispered as though it was forbidden to her. Rose peeked an eye open. The shock was evident and Lightning covered her mouth. "My brother, a father?"

Lightning reached for the heart monitor and turned it off, allowing Rose to remove the needle and she sat on the bed, legs crossed. Staring at the blankets, Rose felt ashamed, fidgeting and silent. She mustered up the courage and said, "…Yes, Auntie. I am your niece."

"Rose…"

Before she knew it, she felt a finger lift her chin to look at her aunt. This time, she couldn't resist looking away at Lightning. Tears were swelling up in her eyes and she shook uncontrollably.

"My niece…" Her tone has shifted and felt like acceptance. Lightning shushed her in a half-decent maternal tone and wiped her tears away. "I'm so sorry, my niece."

In reflex, Rose took her aunt in an embrace and sobbed. The pain was nothing compared to feeling the embrace of her relative and she held on tightly, letting the cries out. Her aunt kept on shushing her and patted her back, whispers of assurance and acceptance in her ears.

"It's okay, Rose, it's okay." Lightning held her closer, soothing and motherly instinct ever so present in her. "Auntie's here for you."

"H-how do you know my name?" Rose managed to say in the midst of her crying.

"Your mother often joked about naming her daughter Rose. Guess she stuck to it." They broke apart and Lightning saw her pendant, observing it in her hand. "You came from the Afterlife, and you have your mother's eyes. It's proof enough you're related to me, Rose."

Rose faintly nodded. She continued to fidget after she got a hold of herself, glancing at her crystal pendant and shy. The tough, no nonsense attitude of her aunt had seemed to fade away for a second, replaced with what her father described as a caring and loving individual.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"It's Uncle Leon…what will he do if he learns I'm his niece?" She asked with a fidget. "Will he reject me? Please tell me, auntie!"

"I don't know, Rose. He says he hates your dad because of what he did to your mom and yourself, but I'm praying Aqua changed his mind. Directed him away from the hate festering inside him." Lightning held her niece's hands. "You're so young, you shouldn't be fighting. I don't want to keep you here, but—"

"No! I want to fight, auntie! I know I'm just a little kid in my head, but I don't care! I want to be there by father's side, to fight and help him!" She stood her ground like the kid she is, taking her aunt by surprise. "I can fight, I know it! I don't want to be left alone while everyone else is fighting out there…"

"Rose, it's dangerous out there. Think, what would your father say if he saw you injured and nearly got paralyzed from the chest down?" Lightning tried to persuade, showing the medical report and tapping on the major injury to her. "Look, this has to be for your own safety. I can't let you back in the field."

"Mother wouldn't—!" She put a hand against her back after she moved too quickly, the cracks of bones in her range of hearing. Rose fell back against the bed, her aunt slowing her down and brushing her hair from her emerald eyes. "Oww…"

"Should've taken it easy, Sparky."

She pouted immaturely at the new nickname her aunt gave her and frowned, the pain poking at her back like persistent fingers. Somehow, she got the feeling that nickname will embarrass her from this day forward.

"I'm stuck here, aren't I, auntie?"

Lightning looked at the log and frowned, "Until your back heals, yes." She patted her head reassuringly. "You're just like your father…"

"Like father?"

"You're just as reckless and headstrong," Lightning knocked on her forehead. "Get some rest, Sparky."

"Is Neo okay?" As if on cue, a pair of ears appeared next to her and Neo barked. A warmth in her heart took over and she hugged the dog. "You're okay!" Neo barked affirmatively and she hugged him a little tighter.

She saw her aunt dusting off her boots of the hairs and muttered something that sounded like 'Damn mutts…' and let go of Neo. "You're lucky you still have a relative or two, Sparky."

"How did you escape from the Stalker?"

Her aunt's expression went grim, darkened with something. Rose couldn't pinpoint what it was exactly, but she knew something was bothering her. Like whatever Lightning saw haunted her from her past. "I warped out before things got nasty."

"And Ruby and the others?" Rose asked, changing the topic.

Lightning patted her head. "They made it out, alright. Don't worry."

Rose beamed like the kid she is and petted Neo's head on her lap. She fed him some meat and her companion chowed it down, followed by her aunt putting back the needle in her arm and reactivating the device. Suddenly, it felt like the pain went away the more she focused on entertaining herself. A kiss on the forehead from her aunt and telling her that she has to return to her duties stung her, but she knew that she had no ordinary family. Questions lingered in her mind, but time was short for Lightning and left them for another day.

After all, her family are Guardians of Equilibrium.

 _Old Bri?ish E?pire, Earth_

 _Unknown time, January 5, 2715_

"He's making progress, Asada."

"Yes, and in a short amount of time too."

Masters Asada and Zephyr observed from the Temple entrance as Spectre leapt through the final obstacle and drew his blade, taking down the training dummies that awaited him in clean strokes. As soon as he sheathed Interitum, the dummies fell apart and barely made a sound in the snowstorm. His heart raced and he took it easy, a wave of Darkness in his hand and he waved it. The snowstorm dissipated and revealed the training course, blanketed by the snow and covered any evidence that he made tracks.

"Brings back memories of the lad back in his Academy days, doesn't it?" Zephyr smirked. "Promising yet to this day."

"Now that he accepted the other half of him? I don't doubt it," Asada prepared tea and continued to watch her 'little brother' as he tackled another course. "Teshin isn't impressed."

"Still? Hasn't he seen Spectre tearing up these courses already?"

Asada took a sip from her cup and held back a face when she tasted how horrid, yet effective, her tea is. "Drat, I thought I had it this time."

Zephyr grinned from ear to ear and held a hand out. "Pay up, lass." Reluctantly, Asada coughed up ten Glimmer for losing another bet. "Seriously though, shouldn't the lad be on the next step of the training by now?"

"He's testing him, Zephyr. Breezing by these tests doesn't guarantee that he's ready to go back out there," another sip from her tea. "Besides, you know what's next on the chopping block."

"Oh yeah, good ol' Master Ryuki," Zephyr dryly remarked, tossing her empty thermos behind her. "Chap's got barely a chance against Ryuki. So what's he supposed to do until he's ready to face Ryuki?"

Asada had long thought about this, looking at her 'little brother' tearing up the obstacles courses and reactively attacking the dummies in little time as possible. A frown was carved onto her lips and looked at her sister. Deep down, she knew how close Spectre was to the breaking point already. Knowing Teshin, he would do this next step before combat training. It was done to every one of the Masters. "He has to face his fears."

"You don't mean…!"

Asada put her tea down and looked towards the mountains. In the distance, she could spot a cave entrance and pedestals filled with light. "He has to face the Praetorium."

* * *

 **A/N: 'Ello, chaps! Been quite a while since my last update, and I so,** ** _so_** **deeply apologize for it. After the last update, things went to shit and well, it hasn't been fair to me. Barely had the time or motivation to write. Anyway, enough of a life story. Hopefully, I'll be back into the fold.**

 **Guest (II-XXIV): I appreciate it, mate! Hope it'll live up to your expectations!**

 **Till next time, chaps!**


	41. II-XXVI: Facing the Demons

**_Chapter XXVI: Facing the Demons_**

 ** _Absolution Arc_**

* * *

 _Conclave Temple, Earth_

 _Unknown Time, January 6, 2715_

Had I not been aware that I was way past completing the maneuverability tests Teshin gave me, surely I would've been doing it over and over again until my body gives in.

As I was eating the morning meal, the feeling that never went away kept on festering in me. It was really annoying as I painstakingly chewed on the food, which was only a loaf of bread and some coffee when I woke up. Asada must've prepared it for me. After all, it seems like I was the only other one up by now, since I didn't see Master Zephyr or Vergil. Again. By now, I was convinced that they were reporting my progress to Teshin personally. After all, I don't have a ship, nor was there a use for learning about technology.

My eyes caught sight of the Praetorium from the Temple and my hands laid down the bread. Something about that place kept me uneased, even as I remember going through that place for the Ascension ceremony, how I became an Excalibur. In a reflection, I saw myself. I wasn't looking any better, not even after I survived a crash. Jokingly, I looked like hypothermia is catching up to me. What really caught my eye was the side of my neck. It was blackened like I was burned, mixed with some of my veins showing the signature Taken bluish-white. I cursed under my breath and touched the infected skin. As if my sudden behavioral changes weren't bad enough…

But then, my mind focused to Reaper. To my daughter again. Were they okay? Over the last few nights, my dreams were surreal, not from the day I killed Vesper, but of both of them. Fighting the Stalker and beaten, almost killed before Lightning saved them. Truth be told, I don't know whether or not it was just a dream or that the Darkness showed me something.

"Sparda," Asada was standing next to me, cup of tea in hand and concerned. "Dreams again?"

"Not really," I took a chunk out of my bread, hiding the spreading Taken from sight, "Just looking back at the past."

"You mean—?"

I shook my head, "The Ascension ceremony."

Asada sat down and saw the Praetorium from where she sat, sipping her tea. "The Ascension ceremony was a test, to isolate the worthy from the rest of the world. Of course, the ceremony was close to how your father and the Eximus got their power," she weaved the tale as she took another sip, "Facing one's fears through a trial on their lonesome, not knowing what fears lie in one's heart…"

"And yet, the Praetorium is one of the few places where the Darkness is the strongest in this galaxy," I put down whatever remained of the loaf of bread that was in my hand, eyes still fixed on the Praetorium. "Not even the Traveler or its Light could silence the Darkness within it."

"I got word from Teshin," Asada adjusted her glasses, "It's time for the next step."

I groaned. I'm beginning to run out of patience, let alone time. That damn old man doesn't even know that I have the Taken inside me!? If this goes on longer, then its hopeless for the Taken War to end, and yet he insists I train more! And also, I will be gone…

" _More_ obstacle courses? You've got to be—"

"Not obstacle courses. You've long passed it."

Why did I get the feeling that something bad was coming? Hell, I could even feel it in my bones. Asada put down her cup and gestured me to suit up. In a moment, my armor materialized and followed after her. The temple doors swung open and we began making our way to one of the many gates of the temple. What was she trying to do? The blizzards were getting worse, coupled with us being ankle deep in snow. I figured that it was that time of year again here at the Temple.

"Don't ask, just follow," she said through the howling winds of the mountain. "And bring a sword with you." The gate opened and we were met with an angry blizzard. Instead of my arm covering my face, the Darkness I managed to control swept it away like it never existed.

Tempted as I was to summon my Sparrow, I knew that this was another part of the tests and held back. A trek up the mountain, huh? Great, I couldn't wait.

It didn't take long to realize that we were going to the Praetorium. The time I took this path up the mountain for the Ascension ceremony was unmistakable, blizzard or no blizzard. My strength was sapped from the long journey up here and here I was, fighting off the pain and keeping the goal in sight. Hell, even the tips of my fingers were freezing. I recognized some of the landmarks on the way up, ranging from a notched stake to a giant rock. Winds were howling over the sounds of our voices, followed up with bombardments of snow. This snow was starting to get to me, even as a rubber suit was under the armor for weather adaptability. My hand tightened around the sword I brought with me, keeping it where it should be. Why? Why return to the Praetorium? What is there to gain when I've been through its trials once before?

Asada and I found ourselves through the blizzard at the doorstep to the Praetorium. The blizzard didn't affect this area, thanks to a higher elevation. It was the same as I remember it all those years ago, back when I would be a child. Memories of when it was just me and Lightning on that day that introduced us to Dragunus and Athena rushed back to mind when I caught sight of the entrance. Unlike a typical cave, the entrance to the Praetorium was closed off by a stone door, ornate and distinguishable with what had to be rare gems. The ice that formed on the doors appeared to blend in with the door, just as these columns that marked where the Praetorium was in the mountains. The fire columns burned with a never-dying flame, true to their purpose and never going out. No one but Teshin knew why the fires never went out in these weather conditions, since he was just as involved into the Darkness like father.

"What's going on, Asada? Why bring me here?" I interrogated her, hand ready to draw my weapon.

Asada's helmet collapsed, "Teshin put you to this, Sparda. Without a strengthened mental state, he thinks you'll be lost forever in your agenda," she struck a match and tossed it into the column, followed with a moment of silence. "I'm under instructions to bring you here and make you undergo a rite of passage."

Rite of passage? Did I hear that right? What kind of a ceremony would…?

"Master Asada, I'm running out of time. I have to—!"

"We know, but if you don't have a tempered fortitude like you used to have, then you have no chance," Asada argues, repeating the ritual with the other fire column. "It's time to perform the rite of passage, Sparda."

"I don't have time for this!" I turned around and began to go back to the Temple.

"Your father set this up in the event something happens."

I froze. Father created this rite of passage for us? Sure, I knew he was able to see into the future, but was _this_ a part of those visions? Me being infected with the Taken and rebelling against the Cyphers? Somehow, I knew it had to be the case. Why else would he go out of his way to set up a rite of passage and leave me and Lightning some of his weapons? Path to the Light started to glow at my side and I drew it out. The blade was glowing in a golden light.

"It would seem that you brought the right one, chibi. I thought you'd make the mistake of bringing something other than Path to the Light."

"What did he want me to do from the rite of passage?"

"Dunno, Teshin said that you'll figure it out when you step in the Praetorium," She stepped aside from the doors as they creaked to life, grinding and shattering against the ice. "Of course, I can't step in there with you. This is something you have to do on your own."

I stood in front of the open doors, facing Master Asada and Path to the Light at bay. "Why not give me the rite of passage that day?"

"You weren't ready. Now, Teshin thinks you're ready."

 **"Because the place is strong in Darkness, I cannot accompany you, Spectre,"** Primus said, appearing next to Asada. **"If you die, I can't bring you back. Not even the Animas Crystal works in the Praetorium. Oh, and everything in there is real enough to kill you, remember?"**

Wonderful. My old man must be crazy. My eyes met the empty void in the Praetorium, facing a whirlpool of Darkness. The evil in here was just as strong as it was at the Ascension ceremony, if not stronger. Its seductive touch came to me, beckoning me to come closer. I glanced at my A.I and Asada before nodding off, keeping the sword at the ready and helmet collapsing. As I stepped foot into the Praetorium, the air felt denser that it was difficult to breathe. Even I began to feel lightheaded, just as it was back then. The doors slammed shut behind me, leaving its echo in this hell.

Breathe in, breathe out, Spectre. Try to keep my air supply in low consumption. The Darkness made its presence known, alright. Foot-deep in fog, denser air, and undeniably the faint whispering. For first timers, these whispers would scare the crap out of them. Why? Because the Darkness mimics the voices of the deceased. I knew that when I heard mother's voice during the Ascension ceremony. Damn near fell off trying to chase after her imposter.

My footsteps were muffled out as I stepped through the fog, following the path I took during the ceremony. The cave was getting smaller, so I had to crouch into a small passageway. Each breath I took was small, followed with a just as small puff of cold air. The fog was too dense and I tried to illuminate my way through with my control over fire. Nothing. Not even the flames could break through the fog. Hoping I didn't do a full one-eighty, my hand traced against the cavern wall as I made my way through the passageway.

Before long, I found myself on a series of islands suspended over a black abyss. Only one of these islands had a spring as a source of water, and the others barren. I was here last time, and I can still recall when I almost fell off the edge. A beam of light from the outside world shone above, followed with the chatter and squeaks of bats. Hell, I could see the skeletons of some of the participants in the Ascension ceremony next to me. Poor guys.

"Mom!"

I stopped. Something brushed by me and ran towards the pond. My eyes narrowed when I saw it. It was me, a child stuck in time. That hair was unmistakable. That wasn't my imagination or memories when I touched my arm. He — _I_ — was real enough. This had to be another trick by the Darkness. So, I ran after myself. When we were at the island with the spring, I stopped running and watched myself looking around, crying out for mom. Before long, I knew I had called something's attention.

Shadowy figures emerged from the ground, roaring at my younger self. As expected of a child self, I fell back in fright and backed away as best I could. It wasn't long before I charged in and dispatched the shadow creatures with Path to the Light in clean slashes, blade unwavering in its glow. The surviving monsters howled in pain from the Light and fled. I turned back to see myself, only for him to cower. Illusion or not, I put the sword back in its sheath and knelt in front of him. My hand reached for him on its own will and my younger self stopped trembling. He looked at me, straight into my soul.

 _"Sparda?!"_

I looked up to see where the call came from, then back at myself. Sometimes, I wish I never did that. A weapon hummed by my ear the moment I looked back and sprung to my feet. In my younger self's place was another Dark Knight, lacking a cape and his armor appearing biomechanical especially with his arm. His helmet was cracked to reveal an eye, I knew who this was. My blood boiled, and at the same time, I didn't want to relive some of the things I've done.

"Hayden…"

My best friend said nothing and brandished the glaive I inherited from him. His breathing still haunts me, since I knew he had an oxygen mask built in his helmet. Meaning? His breathing was not human, replaced by a mechanical lung and hissing. To confront him again, spirit or an illusion, it didn't sink in well. Even after the missions we had together and the times we had a blast, Hayden was still like a brother. How dare you, Darkness? Mimicking my best friend?!

Reluctantly, I drew Path to the Light and gripped it with both hands. I had to remember that this was the Praetorium, not the past. Hayden is dead because of me. No, not because of me. Because of the Cyphers. All I was, was the Cyphers' tool to eliminate him. Had it been my choice, I would've spared him. Gave him the medical treatment he needed.

Hayden's breathing increased and he made the first strike. By now, I memorized his movements and how he uses his glaive. Swing from the left, dodge right. Even if I knew his combat style, everything was shuffled around, became unreadable. This shuffle forced me to keep my guard at all times. Rather than rely on my predictions and knowledge, I deflected each swipe and swing of the throwing weapon while he was at close range by instinct. Guess the obstacle courses did serve a purpose, after all. The imposter caught onto my instinctual attacks and copied me, mimicking Hayden's own movements.

It increasingly became difficult for me to keep up the more he adapted to the situation. My advantage was leveling with his until we knew the other's moves. Of course, I didn't engage my helmet as per tradition once I set foot in here.

Before he could throw it, I tripped him up and unsurprisingly, he threw it already. It wasn't too much of a chore to intercept the glaive and put him in a losing scenario.

Somehow, I forgot that he had more than one glaive as he created another and threw it at me. I threw the one I intercepted and detonated a corrosive payload once it was within proximity with its copy. Both of them became useless after the payload and I took the chance to take 'Hayden' by surprise. I managed to warp behind him and grapple him to prevent escape, crushing his system to create duplicate glaives. As the flashbacks came to me and Hayden's respirator frantically supplying him oxygen, it became clear there was only one way to end this. With Path to the Light, I thrust the blade through his chest and armor.

"W-why, Sparda…?" Hayden finally spoke, monotonous and cold like his respirator.

"You're not him. You're not Hayden," I stabbed deeper, certain I heard bones crack. "All you are is an imposter."

I withdrew the sword and kicked Hayden off, body collapsing to the floor and disintegrating into dark mist. My eyes met the blade and I held it by the blade. At the encrusted hilt, one of the gems that were transparent filled with gray. Asada's words came back to me, how I had to figure out the rite of passage. If I had to guess, it was by defeating the past again. By my count, there were at least three more transparent gems.

A violent shaking broke me from my thoughts and I kept my footing. An earthquake?! My eyes looked at the intersecting bridges connecting the suspending islands. They were crumbling into dust. I didn't realize I cursed, being more aware that this island was only suspending over the abyss because of those two bridges. Breaking into a run, I went for the isle that was opposite of the one I entered and watched my step. However, the rock under my foot crumbled and my leg was caught. Try as I may to get my leg out, it felt like the rock bit my leg and refused to let go. And then—

The earth underneath me collapsed. Every single rock of it. My eyes widened, hands clutching at the best I could get to ensure the abyss below didn't devour me. As luck would have it, I caught a rock below the surface of the island and my fall stopped. I held on as much as I could against the violent shakes. The dark below was hungry, jaws clamping open and shut for its next meal. That was as far as I can go. Amongst the rumbling of the isles and rocks shattering, the shard that I held onto for dear life joined its brethren. It drowned out in the midst of the earthquake.

The air beneath me ran me over and swallowed me into the abyss. And as I yelled from the midst of my fall, no one would hear me, not even from the hole in the cavern ceiling. Was I a fool for not being cautious in here? No. Because I knew one thing for sure.

This was just the beginning.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, here we are again with another look into Spectre's training. If you ask me, I felt like this was appropriate to show out of all the training he could do. So, maybe I'll skip the training in the future and cut to it. What do you guys think?**

 **Dragonscale1235: Thanks, mate!**

 **Wesseldg02: Well, you're in luck I'm still active.**

 **Till next time, chaps!**


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